The drop-off lane in front of Warren Road Elementary School was already full by about 7:20 a.m. on Thursday morning as the 2023-2024 school year kicked off for elementary school students in Richmond County.
School buses had pulled out by 5:30 a.m., arriving in time for the rush by 7:15 a.m., noted Richmond County Superintendent of Schools Kenneth Bradshaw.
“I can see the excitement in all of the administrators,” Bradshaw said. “This morning, we could see our parents excited. They arrived early, and they’re just looking forward to a wonderful school year.”
After the doors opened, students and visitors could see a colorful “Warrior Pride” mural across the hallway wall, painted by Keyvia Mack, an artist and alumna from Davidson Fine Arts Magnet School.
Early Intervention Program (EIP) reading teacher Suzanne Mayson, EIP math teacher Erica Peek, art teacher Nicola Brown, dance teacher Ansley Jones and school psychologist Amy Bell greeted parents escorting their children through the entry hall.
“I’m looking forward to when students catch the new moves that they’re not used to,” said Jones, who has taught dance at Warren Road Elementary since January of this year. “I’m looking forward to that, just teaching and being here with the kids.”
In the July 18 meeting of the Richmond County Board of Education, Deputy Superintendent of Operations Horace Dunson announced the district receiving funds from Bill 147, signed by Governor Brian Kemp in April, which distributed some $50,000 to every school in Georgia to improve security.
Dunson told the school board that these monies would go toward several security enhancements in Richmond County Schools, including new security vestibules and upgraded camera systems.
Dunson also mentioned in the same meeting school construction and improvement projects underway, including the K-5 South School and West Middle School, both new schools under construction and scheduled to be completed in May and July of 2024.
Superintendent Bradshaw noted all these developments when talking about the upcoming school year, alongside the district’s literacy initiatives, among them the recent digital library card program launched by the school district and the Augusta-Richmond County Public Library System.
“Our literacy initiative is going to be key to all of our third graders reading fluently,” Bradshaw said. “Therefore, that literacy initiative with the library was one step in the right direction ensuring that our students are going to be prepared.”
Bradshaw also noted that “there’s really not a deficit of teachers and bus drivers” in the school district, even amid recent efforts to draw more personnel, including two job fairs over the summer.
“Yes, it’s going to be tight, but we’re rallying together to ensure that all classrooms and all routes are covered,” he said.
The first day of school for magnet, middle and high schools in Richmond County will be Monday, Aug. 7.
Skyler Q. Andrews is a staff reporter for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
