WILSON COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) – “It’s become a political battleground.”
That’s how one parent describes the Wilson County school system.
During an unscripted briefing Monday night, the schools chief exclaimed that the political divide is pushing qualified teachers.
“I’ve had more teachers contact me in the last 72 hours than in the last two years. And the same thing I’m hearing, we can’t take it anymore,” said Wilson County Schools Superintendent Jeff Luttrell.
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It was an impassioned plea from Luttrell at Monday’s school board meeting. He spoke after hearing back-and-forth on the issues of book bans, transgender student discussion and teacher retention.
“You can’t keep bringing politics to every meeting we have — this community needs to find integration or you’re going to destroy the education system,” Luttrell said.
He noted that the shortage of teachers is affecting the entire country.
“Teachers are where the rubber meets the road in the classroom,” said West Wilson Middles School Principal Josh Johnston.
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Over the summer, West Wilson Middle School had more than 20 spots to fill. However, this gap was recently halved.
“I will be the sixth director in six years. Now our school has been displaced by a tornado, then the COVID outbreak happened, the faculty and staff have been through quite a bit,” Johnston said.
For the past few years, students have been learning in classrooms across the district. And while construction continues on a new building, Principal Johnston hopes the new school is just one way to boost morale.
“We have an opportunity to hit the reset button and we can build it the way we want and create a culture where I think it takes a family atmosphere. It takes a village to raise children and I think that’s what a building should be school,” Johnston said.
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Johnston told News 2 they are still looking to fill about a dozen positions at West Wilson Middle School. He said the openings are mainly for math and English.
However, he said even if the administration has to step up, he’s confident they’ll be in a good place once school starts.
