Todd County Standard - Kentucky Press Association

EDUCATION
SCHOOLS TO MAKE CURRICULUM MORE CHALLENGING
BY ELIZABETH JOHNSON
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
With a new principal at
the high school, new
Common Core Standards
adopted by the state and the
renovation of several facilities,
the Todd County
school system is embracing
change.
The TCCHS principal
selection committee interviewed
four candidates for
principal in June, choosing
to hire Todd Marshall.
Marshall, who has experience
as an athletic director,
guidance counselor and
high school assistant principal,
left his most recent post
as principal of Slaughters
Elementary School in
Webster County to take the
position.
Kenner said he feels
Marshall was the strongest
candidate, though the race
was a close one.
“He’s got a proven
record and came highly recommended,”
said Kenner.
“We’re excited to have him
on board.”
The recently adopted
curriculum is expected to
create more of a challenge
for students with the intentions
of making expectations
more clear, said Mike
Kenner, superintendent.
“Teachers have been
very busy already doing
some work on that, getting
their units and plans
tweaked to match up with
those standards,” said
Kenner. “I am hopeful that
this will give us something
we can dig into and grab
hold of and increase the
rigor for all of our students
with the ultimate goal of all
of our students being college
and career ready.
We’ve got to get them
ready.”
Also on the state level is
the adoption of end-ofcourse
assessments for the
high school.
Along with that, Todd
County is one of five school
districts in the state piloting
the Board Exam System,
which would be an addition
to the end-of-course assessments
and give students the
chance to earn college
credit.
“We’re doing more
things to make sure students
meet certain guidelines to
be career ready,” said
Kenner. “Our students
would have the opportunity,
if they score well enough, to
spend their last two years of
high school doing college
level work so conceivably if
they do well enough they
could come out after four
years of high school having
an associate’s degree.”
While Kenner said he
realizes that achievement
would be difficult, he is
excited about the possibility
for students to work hard
and reap that reward.
Kenner is also in a continuous
push to get a career
technical center. Students
currently use the center in
Russellville and while
Kenner is grateful for that
“students are on the road an
hour going back and forth
rather than in classes.”
“Until we can actually
get one we’re just working
with the high school to try
to add areas to the vocational
field as we can and
hopefully, eventually this
economy will turn around
and we’ll keep lobbying the
legislature to try to get the
funding for a center here on
our campus,” Kenner said.
“If we’re wanting our students
to be college- (and)
career-ready, we need to
provide them those opportunities.”
Part of a years-long
process to update facilities
and plan for growth, the
addition of wings to North
and South Todd Elementary
schools was completed in
2011.
“We ended up making
them preschool wings
because that just gave the
preschool an area more
suited to them,” said
Kenner. “It’s also going to
have room for family
resource center that’s a lot
more private.”
The newly renovated
Todd County Horizons
Academy opened in the
spring.
For Kenner and all others
serving in the Todd
County School District, the
mission is to provide opportunity
for all students, making
changes to ensure readiness
and success.
38 DISCOVER TODD COUNTY Todd County Standard