Another School Year Starts

The familiar yellow school buses are making their rounds on Rockbridge area roads this week. Children lugging backpacks are being seen in abundance waiting at bus stops and traipsing along local roads. Motorists are advised to be extra cautious when they encounter the children and yellow buses.

School is back in session. We may be suffering through yet another heat wave and staring at another month of summer, but another school year is underway. Students started classes Tuesday in Rockbridge County and Lexington while classes resumed today, Wednesday, in Buena Vista. Local private schools with ever-increasing enrollments are also welcoming students back now and in the coming weeks.

In Buena Vista, secondgraders are attending Enderly Heights Elementary School, rather than F.W. Kling Elementary School. The switch was made to ease overcrowding at Kling, which is being led by a new principal this year, Dr. Brenda Walt.

At Rockbridge County High School, students who take classes at the recently renamed Rockbridge Innovation Center – formerly Floyd S. Kay Technical Career and Education Center – will be seeing signs that the center is about to undergo a massive renovation/ expansion. The $14 million construction project is slated to get underway this fall and be completed by the midway point of the next school year.

While the pandemic is mostly behind us, parents are urged to make sure their children are up-to-date on their vaccinations against the latest strains of COVID-19 and all other vaccine shots to protect everyone against preventable illnesses. Another effect of the pandemic – some students lagging behind in their academic progress because of missed time in the classroom – continues to be a point of emphasis for the local school systems. Teachers, parents and the children themselves are working together to overcome this nagging problem.

Teachers have had to endure more than their share of challenges in recent years. In addition to the pandemic, society’s culture wars have spilled over into the classroom and school board meetings, making teachers the object of ire from some quarters. The pressure on teachers can be enormous at times, prompting many to leave the profession prematurely and prospective teachers to rethink their career plans. We urge everyone to be supportive of teachers and to encourage children to choose this noble profession.

As another school year gets underway, make an effort to thank a teacher for all of the positive contributions they are making for our children and society in general. We are thankful for all they do and are also appreciative of the efforts of the support staff – bus drivers, cafeteria workers, custodians, school resource officers, paraprofessionals and administrators.

We wish everyone a successful and safe school year.