Whitehall parents meet with principal, superintendent

JACKSON, Tenn.– It was a mini reunion for students and staff of Whitehall Pre-K Learning Center, Tuesday evening.

“The teachers and staff at Whitehall are nothing short of magical,” parent Beth Parnell said.

Parents of students who attend the Pre-K Learning Center gathered at the downtown Jackson-Madison County Library to hear updates about when their child can return to school after it was closed due to severe damage caused by hail.

“So far it’s been progressing very well,” Jackson-Madison County School Superintendent Dr. Verna Ruffin said.

Ruffin and Whitehall principal Tisa Day answered questions and gave parents updates on the school.

“Our teachers and staff have been working at both sites. At Nova to get it ready for anything that has already been delivered, unpacking and getting their classrooms ready,” Ruffin said.

Ruffin said although most items have yet to be delivered teachers are sorting their old classrooms and packing.

“I think it has brought us together closer as a staff and we have really worked as a team,” Principal Tisa Day said.

Day said she is ready to get back to learning.

“That’s why we’re here, we are here for students and so it was great to see our students today and we are just excited to get back to what we know best and that’s educating our youngest learners,” Day said.

And parents are ready as well.

“(My son) has autism spectrum disorder and one of the key elements is keeping everything in a routine and consistent. That’s very important to him,” Parent Beth Parnell said.

Her son, Brody receives physical, occupational and speech therapy. It is something she said she cannot get elsewhere.

“Children the age of my son, they have nowhere else to go if they are trying to access the special needs services through the school system,” Parnell said.

And when the doors open up at Nova on January 25, the staff will be waiting.

“I am waiting for our students to run in that front door and to give me a hug and for me to return and give them a hug,” Day said.

For parents who need help with transportation you have two days to sign your child up for the free shuttle that will pick your little one up from Whitehall in the mornings and take them to Nova and return them in the afternoons.

To sign up, look for the contact information in the “Seen on 7” section.

Parents are encouraged to attend the open house at the Nova campus on January 24. The school is scheduled to start in the new location the next day on January 25.