News

Members of the newly-established Cannon County Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition recently conducted  their first scheduled meeting at the Woodbury Lions Club building. And, they weren’t disappointed in the activities. All Board of Directors were present as well as seven Sector Representatives, several coalition partners, concerned citizens, a representative of the Tennessee National Guard Counter Drug Task Force and coalition members from surrounding counties. 
The agenda included a review of the National Drug Take Back Day event (the first event implemented by the coalition), accomplishments of the first 30 days of existence,  participation in the upcoming National Prevention Week, announcements of events by coalition partners and a Naloxone training presented by Trey Dees, Regional Overdose Prevention Specialist. Those who participated in the training received certificates and a Narcan overdose kit, enabling them, perhaps, to save a life.
 
The next meeting will be Thursday, June 13th at 11 am at the Woodbury Lions Club building. The coalition is open to ALL community members and youth who want to make a difference. 
 

The Nashville Predators Foundation awarded a $2,750 grant to the Child Advocacy Center as part of its 2019 record-breaking donation of $675,962 to 145 area non-profit organizations. 
Established in 1998, the Nashville Predators Foundation is dedicated to providing financial support to local youth-oriented non-profit organizations in Middle Tennessee that help meet the educational, social, health, and cultural needs of our community’s children.
 
“The Nashville Predators Foundation has a rich history or providing support to organizations in our community that serve children and youth,” said Child Advocacy Center director Sharon De Boer.  “We are grateful to the Predators Foundation for their faithful support of the children and families that we serve.”
 
The $2,750 Predator’s grant will support the Darkness to Light Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Program.  Darkness to Light is evidence based, national curriculum used to train adults how to prevent children from being sexually abused and what to do if a child discloses sexual abuse to you.  The Predators funds will be used to send four staff and volunteers to the Darkness to Light authorized facilitator training.
 
In 2012, the Child Advocacy Center set a goal to train 10,500 people in Rutherford and Cannon Counties how to protect their children from child sexual abuse.  This number represented 5% of the adult population of both counties at that time.  The Child Advocacy Center is excited to announce that over 10,750 adults have been trained.
 
“No parent or grandparent wants their child to be sexually abused,” said Child Advocacy Center Community Education Coordinator Brittnie Noble.  “We are utilizing the Darkness to Light training curriculum to give parents and grandparents the tools to protect their children from child sexual abuse.  Our goal is to reduce the number of child victims in Rutherford and Cannon County by training their parents and grandparents how to protect them.”
 
To bring the Darkness to Light child sexual abuse prevention training to your church, school, business, -non-profit agency, or civic group please contact Brittnie Noble in Rutherford County at 615-867-9000 or bnoble@cacrutherford.org or Cassell Galligan-Davis innCannon County at 615-563-9915 or cdavis@cannoncac.org. 
 
Get involved.  Together we can reduce the number of child sexual abuse victims in our community!
 

State Senator Mark Pody and State Representative Clark Boyd hosted a Breakfast for Cannon County High School Valedictorian Erika Taylor & Salutatorian Lauren Underwood on Thursday Morning.  Also joining for this breakfast was Cannon County High School Principal Courtney Nichols, Assistant Principal Kay Barker, local Businessman / School Board Member Bruce A. Daniel who sponsored the event, and Director of Cannon County Schools William F. Curtis. 
State Senator Pody and Representative Boyd lead a very informative discussion with the two Cannon County High School Top Scholars regarding current issues and trends facing today’s high school students. The discussion with all present participating, discussed the students’ individual plans for college and beyond, plus their essential input regarding future educational and societal challenges.   
 
Valedictorian Erika Taylor is the daughter of Eric Taylor of McMinnville and Priscilla Campbell of Woodbury. Salutatorian Lauren Underwood is the daughter of Brad and Amy Underwood of Woodbury where both are teachers at East Side Elementary School.  Erika plans on pursuing a degree in Speech Pathology at Middle Tennessee State University, and Lauren plans on becoming an Elementary Teacher like both of her parents by majoring in Elementary Education at Middle Tennessee State University.
 
Cannon County High School Principal Courtney Nichols stated, “CCHS is very proud of these two outstanding young ladies and their candor and openness to Senator Pody and Representative Boyd.  These young ladies have displayed integrity, a tremendous work ethic, and diligence in the classroom.  CCHS and I are extremely proud of these young ladies and their accomplishments!”
 
Cannon County Director of Schools William F Curtis stated, “These two young ladies are the best of the best.  I was extremely proud, as both Erika and Lauren, interacted with our State Leaders.”
 

Governor Bill Lee has declared May 2019 as Building Safety Month to increase public awareness of the critical role building codes play in ensuring fire and life safety.Created 39 years ago by the International Code Council, Building Safety Month is an international campaign designed to raise awareness about the importance of code adoption and celebrate the work of state and local codes inspectors who help ensure the safety of communities. The Tennessee State Fire Marshal’s Office is proud to join Governor Lee and the International Codes Council in promoting this annual campaign.
In 2018, the State Fire Marshall’s Office completed 2,873 inspections of residential structures, issued 135,011 electrical permits, reviewed 1,045 building plans, and conducted 211,131 total electrical inspections.
Building codes address all aspects of construction, including fire prevention, structural integrity, and energy efficiency, to name a few.
Because these structures are being built with such resiliency, the risk of property damage is reduced, which may provide property owners with lower insurance costs and save millions of taxpayer dollars in the wake of natural disasters.
For more information on Building Safety Month, visit the International Code Council’s website.
 

Cannon County Schools named Stephanie Alexander, 6th – 12th Grades System-Wide Instructional Coach and Angie Fann, Response to Intervention System-Wide Coach as “Employees of the Month” for May 2019. During the May Meeting of the Cannon County Board of Education on Thursday, May 9th, 2019, Alexander and Fann were recognized and presented certificates by Cannon County Schools Director William F. Curtis for their service to the system.  Employees are nominated by School Principals or School District Supervisors and are voted on during monthly Principal and Supervisor meetings regarding individuals who exemplify the Mission and Vision of Cannon County Schools. 
Kathy Mullins – Federal Programs/Pre K Supervisor and Chairman of the District Improvement Plan nominated these employees, stated, “In order for Tennessee to reach its goals that all students have the knowledge and skills to successfully embark upon their chosen path in life, it is important that schools, districts, and the state develop strong plans for improvement that aim to incrementally move towards those long term goals. Therefore, all districts and schools in Tennessee are required to create a comprehensive improvement plan that is developed annually by a diverse group of stakeholders to drive prioritization of the work and associated funding decisions to improve educational opportunities for all students. During the planning process, the team is challenged to review various data points to identify the current needs of the district or school. Once the needs are identified, the planning team creates aligned goals, strategies, and action steps that align with the prioritized needs. All plans should be monitored regularly and revised based on students’ needs throughout the school year with input from the planning team. 
 
Stephanie Alexander, Cannon’s District-Wide 6th-12th Instructional Coach, and Angie Fann, Cannon’s District-Wide Response to Instruction and Intervention Coach took upon the vital roles in reviewing data, aligning goals for our district and creating the action steps necessary to ensure Cannon’s students are prepared for their future. In turn, Stephanie and Angie will assist principals and teachers in reaching the outlined goals.   Our schools will now begin work on their individual School Improvement Plans based on the District’s master plan.”
 
 
Director of Cannon County Schools, Mr. William F. Curtis stated, “These two veteran teachers now serve all Cannon County Schools.  They worked very hard to assist our Supervisors and the entire District Improvement Plan Team to produce a plan that meets expectations and will affect our schools in a very positive way in the up-coming school year.  These plans, with their associated goals and expectations, are vital to prioritize and to achieve our educational goals. 
 

Students in Cannon County Schools will soon get their final report card for the year.  Director of Schools, William Freddy Curtis got his, this week.  The Board of Education conducted a review of job performance on Curtis.  Members of the board, school administrators and teachers graded the director. The process used was developed by the Tennessee School Board Association and the rate is based on a points system. Measurement is ranked with a one being low and five the best.  The score for Curtis was 4.24, that score translates to “above expections.” 
After the score was announced, board member Bruce Daniel moved to have the current contract for the director extended for two additional years.  The board vote for extension of the directors contact by a vote of four to one. The lone no vote came from Board Chairman Nathan Sanders. Sanders stated that earlier the board had gone on record opposing long term agreements.
 

The Annie Cox Memorial Scholarship Committee has announced the awarding of a scholarship to Lauren Underwood, Cannon County High School Senior – Class of 2019, who will graduate on May 17th, 2019.  This scholarship is in memory of longtime educator and beloved Cannon County citizen, Mrs. Annie Cox.  It has been established as an additional financial resource for a student intending to major in Elementary Education who has demonstrated achievement and based on need.  Mrs. Cox was a very special person to all of Cannon County, and appropriately this scholarship honors her “Love for Education and Children, Character, Capability, and Need.”   The scholarship personifies Mrs. Cox’s words, “I love to see children learn!  I just love it! And want to make a difference in the life of a child.” — Mrs. Annie Cox.  
The Scholarship amount was $500.00 in which Lauren will use toward her demonstrated need to attend college intending to major in Early Childhood Education.  She is the daughter of Brad and Amy Underwood of Woodbury.  Lauren stated in her essay, which was a part of the scholarship application, “I want to be an Elementary teacher because I love teaching young children the power of knowledge. Being a teacher is about serving as a stepping stone for children to explore the endless possibilities that learning inspires.” 
 
The Mrs. Annie Cox Memorial Scholarship is awarded annually to a Cannon County High School Senior that is on track to graduate this year, have an application pending to or acceptance received from a state accredited two or four year college/university, recommendation of a CCHS faculty member, intending to major in Elementary Education, and write a 300 Word Essay entitled, “Why I deserve this scholarship, and why do I want to be an Elementary Teacher?”   
 
Teacher and long-time colleague of Mrs. Cox – Mrs. Rita Jones. This year – 2019 marks the 10th year since Mrs. Cox’s passed away on July 6th, 2009.
 

Commissioner of Education Penny Schwinn announced that 18,560 students in 928 classrooms across Tennessee will benefit from the Voluntary Pre-K program in the 2019-20 school year. 138 districts applied for and received VPK funding through the competitive grant designed to serve 4-year-old students who are at-risk and students in high-priority communities. Sixty-eight of these 138 districts are rural. Four of these classrooms will be in Cannon County. 
Since the Pre-K Quality Act was passed in 2016, the department has implemented a number of quality improvement efforts designed to support districts and schools to provide high-quality early learning opportunities. Revisions to the Tennessee Early Learning Developmental Standards aligned instructional expectations with Tennessee’s K-12 Academic Standards to ensure kindergarten readiness. This was further supported through the provision of new curriculum and instructional materials in all Voluntary Pre-K classrooms last year and ongoing professional development for district teams and pre-K teachers. The department also continues to improve enrollment processes to expand access and effectively serve eligible children.
 
Pursuant to the requirements outlined in the Pre-K Quality Act of 2016, Voluntary Pre-K funding was awarded on a competitive basis in order to provide consistently high-quality Voluntary Pre-K programs that prioritize serving students from low-income families.
 
Cannon County School District was approved for 4 classrooms this year and will be awarded 4 classrooms for school year 2019-2020.
 

A second public hearing on the proposed annexation by owner consent for property owned by Cole Reed, Kendall Smith and Mike Hutchins. The property is located off Old McMinnville Highway. No objections were heard over the annexation. 
The second reading to consider adoption of Resolution 219-02, a resolution to annex certain territory upon written consent of the owners to incorporate the same within the boundaries of the City of Woodbury.  The property owned by Cole Reed, Kendal Smith, and Mike Hutchins was approved
 
Consider adoption of Ordinance to amend Title 12 of the Woodbury Municipal Code to address commercial building permits and regulations on first reading.   The ordinance was was approved.
 
Mathew Tucker presented Contract 319 WTP piping and basin painting and repairs. On May 2nd, bids were received for the project. All bids were sealed with proper documentation and no irregularities were apparent at the bid opening. Also the lowest and best bid is within the estimated project budget. Based on evaluation the recommendation was to award contract 319 to Commercial Painting Inc. from Nashville in the amount of $118,500.00.
 
Mayor Duggin moved to re-appoint Buddy Davenport to the Woodbury Housing Authority board for a five year term expiring March 31 2024. Alderman approved the action.
 
Alderman reviewed a request to approve the use of Dillon Park as the assembly area for a 5K Run. The run will serve as a fundraiser for the Child Advocacy Center of Cannon County.  Proposed date for the event is slated for June 8th. The race time will begin at 7:30 am and is expected to be done by 9:00am. ayor and Board of Alderman approved use of the park and street closures.
 
Mathew Tucker presented Contract 319 WTP piping and basin painting and repairs.
 
On May 2nd, bids were received for the project. All bids were sealed with proper documentation and no irregularities were apparent at the bid opening. Also the lowest and best bid is within the estimated project budget. Based on evaluation the recommendation was to award contract 319 to Commercial Painting Inc. from Nashville in the amount of $118,500.00.
 

Senior profiles continue today (Thursday, May 9th)  on Cannon County’s Radio Station…9am Ashley Hurly
10am Aaron Johnson
11am Tiger Lily Kennedy
12pm Isaiah Lamb
1pm Tyler Lance
 2pm Caitlin Leath
3pm Noah JT Logston
4pm Madison Lowe
5pm Flor Magana