In the fall, Brainerd Baptist School engaged the Southern Association of Independent Schools (SAIS) to conduct their School Community Feeback Survey. Brainerd Baptist School holds membership in SAIS along with approximately 400 other schools in our region. Their work on governance, culture, and accreditation is very important and is widely recognized and respected. This survey (which is used by many SAIS member schools) is designed to gather data on how well schools meet the expectations of their parents, families, and faculty. 

We have endeavored to create a growth mindset within our community, and a  vital component of this is routinely asking tough questions and then reflecting and responding to those answers. Our desire is to share the results of the survey and then respond to questions or concerns that were raised.  This is the first in a series of communication in which I would like to have the platform to discuss the survey results and then respond to some items within the results. I acknowledge that this post is longer than usual; however, I hope you will take the time to read through the data and be proud of our school. While we feel validated in the work we are doing, we are also driven to continue to improve.

Survey Process

I like to describe the survey process by comparing it to the necessary annual physical. None of us enjoy the uncomfortable parts of seeing our physician annually, but we certainly recognize the value of the process. This information allows us to make changes in our habits that lead to healthier choices and improved lifestyles. I view the recent survey in a similar manner. When people are provided with anonymity, the goal is for them to be open and honest, and I believe this happened in our survey. The flip side is that occasionally, things that are critical (and sometimes personal) can also be said. My desire is to be very transparent with our families. Most of you know that I am very passionate about Brainerd Baptist School. I sincerely believe in our school and its mission. We have the most dedicated and gifted faculty in our area. They are professionals who work tirelessly to do what is best for children. While I am convinced that all of these things are true, we must always strive to improve our program. This, I believe, is what makes our school great. Over the last five years, I could easily list a dozen ways in which we have made changes to programming in the best interest of our students.  

Survey Background

The survey, which was conducted back in October, has been given in schools similar to Brainerd Baptist School thousands of times. The last time we sent out a survey such as this was in 2018, and at the time were informed that our results were among the highest ever tallied. Because of that, there was an expectation that the scores on this survey would be lower. When you also factor in the effects of a worldwide pandemic, the great resignation, and the research that clearly shows people, in general, are just not as happy as they used to be, I really was prepared for the results to be much lower than what was recorded previously. The survey is all-encompassing and helps schools identify if their constituents feel like the education they provide is of good value. The survey assigns respondents into one of three categories based on their responses: Promotor, Passive, or Detractor.  Let’s start out by looking at the scores and details from our parent survey.

Parent Net Promoter Score (NPS) - 80. The Parent NPS mean for all schools (K-12 and elementary) is 59, and the mean score for elementary-only schools is 67. This higher score tends to support a widely held opinion that lower schools tend to be happier places when compared to high schools.  Our NPS was a 92 in 2018. As you can see, our survey results overwhelmingly indicate that parents continue to strongly believe that we are fulfilling our mission and operating from a position of strength. Our parents shared many valuable comments (over 15 pages, to be exact!), and we have spent time reading and reflecting on those. We certainly love the positive comments, but we are also intent on reviewing the “not-so-flattering” comments and making improvements where necessary.

Faculty Net Promoter Score (NPS) - 100. This is a massive accomplishment for our school. According to SAIS, a score of 100 is rarely ever seen from a faculty group. The mean score for Faculty NPS in elementary schools is 75. This score shows that our faculty is happy in the workplace and fully committed to the mission of Brainerd Baptist School. Another important factor to consider when looking at this score is that we have just come out of an unprecedented period of time where data shows teachers (across the country) have chosen to leave the profession. Additionally, SAIS reports that Faculty NPS scores have trended down since 2020. Now, more than ever, it is clear our faculty enjoy working at Brainerd Baptist School, and this happiness manifests itself in the amazing things they do each day. 

As you can see, there is much to be proud of, but we also understand we have room for improvement. I will be writing and sharing some of those things over the next couple of weeks. The full report is attached for those who want to review it.

Katie Adams & Natalie Daniel lead a session at TAIS

This week our faculty participated in a conference attended by almost 900 educators from independent schools across our state. The Tennessee Association of Independent Schools organizes this conference and rotates from Memphis to Nashville to Chattanooga. When it is in our city, local member schools are encouraged to schedule the second day of the conference as an in-service day so their entire faculty can attend. I realize that it is unusual for our school to cancel classes on a random Monday in November. I hope that this post will help parents understand the logic behind and value of this decision. There are many different opportunities for small groups or individuals to attend educational workshops in a given academic year, but this conference is the only time when our entire faculty can attend professional development together. There were dozens of sessions that were geared to all grade levels and subjects. This conference is special because it is conducted FOR teachers BY teachers. This means that the sessions are led by teachers who are working at schools similar to Brainerd Baptist School from across the state. Many of our teachers also presented on topics sharing ideas or areas of expertise with their peers. In addition to attending sessions that help our teachers sharpen their skills and try new things, they can also talk with teachers from other local schools and educators from other parts of the state. The conversation is important and allows teachers to share success stories and talk through the struggles they face each day.

Deb Gruner Awarded the Hubert Smothers Excellence in Teaching Award

On Sunday, a special reception was held to honor four educators who have extraordinary careers in education. The TAIS Hubert Smothers Award for Excellence in Teaching is awarded by a committee of TAIS staff and board members who review nominations for the award. This award was established to honor Hubert Smothers, president of Harrison-Chilhowee Baptist Academy in Seymour, TN from 1970-1984. He was a teacher and administrator who cared deeply about the students and faculty entrusted to his care. It is in his memory and those ideals about which he felt so strongly that the Hubert Smothers Excellence in Teaching Awards are presented to honor the teaching profession. Nominees must meet an impressive set of criteria, including:

• Have at least 20 years’ experience in the teaching profession

• Have expertise in students' needs and development and unselfishly works toward

  their overall wellbeing

• Make contributions that go beyond the school community and impact the local,

  regional, and/or national educational community

• Demonstrate leadership in school activities outside of the classroom

• Be a respected, positive community member

  This award seeks to honor teachers who care deeply for students and know how to engage and inspire them and care deeply for their school community and the larger communities around them.

Below are the words that Sarah Wilson, Executive Director of TAIS read that capture what Mrs. Gruner has meant to our community.
”I’ve talked a lot about expansion and size, and I don’t want to neglect the significance of an alternative material force–compression–which can be powerful enough to catalyze all kinds of reactions, including creating the heat to ignite fuel. Deb Gruner’s work in education–almost 40 years at Brainerd Baptist School where she is currently a Fourth and Fifth-grade teacher–is characterized by igniting the potential in others, be they her students, her colleagues, or the multiple Heads of School for whom she has worked. Deb’s fun, engaging, and student-centered classroom serves as a launching point for Brainerd Baptist students who go on to thrive at their Middle Schools. And Deb also catalyzes potential in her colleagues, long serving as a mentor teacher in an official capacity and through her unofficial but highly sought-after mentorship of former students who are now educators themselves; she also works with a local university to help aspiring teachers each year and has volunteered her time tutoring underserved students in Chattanooga. I feel certain that part of Deb’s effective work to ignite others' passions for education and scholarship is through the example she sets as a true lifelong learner. Deb’s Head of School, Sean Corcoran, explains that Deb “continues to re-invent her teaching style by evolving to how children learn, which looks considerably different today than when she started fresh out of college.” As Sean notes, Deb’s passion for learning and for her work means that “her peers and students’ parents often seek her wisdom in professional matters and even their own parenting. Any teacher who spends time around her is better for it, and the school, and ultimately students, share in this reward. This unique ability is not limited to classroom teachers as multiple heads at BBS have also relied on Deb for counsel, encouragement, or just an ear to listen.” It’s no wonder that Deb has done so many significant things at Brainerd Baptist: serving as grade level chair, serving on curriculum and accreditation committees, creating and organizing the school’s house system, and creating the school’s six-day schedule each year.”

We are proud of Mrs. Gruner for her accomplishments. She is the first teacher from Brainerd Baptist School to win this coveted award. Our teachers were so grateful to have this time to learn from their peers, collaborate and network with other educators. Conferences such as this inspire us to be lifelong learners and strive for excellence for our students' benefit.

When we ask someone to share “How we are doing?” it is understood that we are opening ourselves up to criticism, but we also believe there is value in this process. As a school, we want to embody a mindset of continual improvement. A significant part of this is to ask our families for feedback. We want to know how you feel and ask for this information because we understand that there is always room for improvement. We also want to be a school that consistently looks for ways to improve not only our communication and programming but every facet of the educational experience.

Recently, our new families received a brief survey that inquired about their experience of coming into our school. We are currently reviewing that information to improve our processes for welcoming new families.

On a larger scale, we will soon be offering all of our families an opportunity to provide feedback about their experiences with our school. This is being done to help prepare our school for our accreditation visit that will take place in the fall of 2023. The accreditation process is vitally important to schools and is a 5-year cycle that culminates with a group of educators from other schools across our region coming on campus to review our school. They will meet with parents, teachers, trustees, and students during this time and will make recommendations for things we can improve on and commendations on things we are doing well. We will use the School Community Survey conducted by our friends at the Southern Association of Independent Schools (SAIS) to gather data. Your participation in this survey is important as we prepare for the visit. The survey will cover all facets of our school, provide an opportunity for parents to brag about the areas where we excel, and offer suggestions for improvement. If you have questions, please reach out to me.

Occasionally a prospective or current parent will ask me about standardized testing. As I explain our testing process, I also explain that we use the results of the testing to look for trends over time and that information helps us drive curricular decisions. For the last two years, we have been reviewing our math curriculum. We have previously used Saxon math for K5-2nd grades and My Math in grades 3-5. Our desire was to switch to one curriculum for all grades. I have asked MIssy Henson, our Director of Learning services, to share more about our process and the new math curriculum our students will use this year.

In the summer of 2021 the math team, comprised of one teacher per grade level met several times and selected three potential math curriculums to adopt at Brainerd Baptist School from a list of 10. During the first semester of 2021, the team took an in-depth look into all three curriculums. By January, the team had narrowed the choices down to one - Bridges in Mathematics.  After making the selection, materials had to be ordered and training scheduled. Through the spring semester, time was set aside for all classroom teachers to be trained on implementation.

As parents, you can expect math to look similar; manipulatives, games, centers, fact practice, and direct instruction from the teacher.  You will notice a significant difference in Number Corner - a specific and intentional space designated for math in each classroom. Our students will also be using specific apps that are based on the visual models that are being taught in each unit. (Apps are available in multiple versions: a web app for all modern browsers and downloadable versions for specific operating systems and devices.) Our students will solve complex problems using visual models and manipulatives and will also make and test conjectures while recording their thinking In the 4th/5th grades, our schedule will look different. Mrs. Merrion will teach all students in math, but every homeroom teacher will also have “number corner” time in their homeroom each morning to help get students thinking about math. Bridges also has an intervention program that we will be using with students in our Learning Center. 

Parents, as you begin meeting with your child’s teachers this year, they will be happy to answer any questions you have as well as give you more details about our new curriculum. We will see you soon!

We have previously shared with our community how our school has experienced significant enrollment growth over the last couple of years. That growth has led to expanded programming (K2, Learning Center, etc.), which in turn, means we have added new positions throughout this time. Additionally, we had multiple teachers retire at the end of the 2021-2022 school year which created additional openings for our upcoming year.

We began working to fill our open positions in January. The hiring process at Brainerd Baptist School is a very thorough undertaking that requires interviews with multiple groups including an admin team and a group of teachers. Additionally, prospective teachers spend a day on campus teaching and interacting with students. Much effort is given to identifying the best fit for our students and teachers. Once this process is complete, teachers are hired and we begin the orientation process with our new faculty members.

We are excited to be adding the following individuals to our faculty for the 2022-2023 year. You can click on their names to read a brief bio.

• Christina Anliker - 1st Grade Assistant

• Catherine Bohnet - K4 Assistant

• Lora Bunn - K2 Assistant

• Amber Craven - K2 Teacher

• Amie Hanson - K2 Teacher

• Rebecca Merrion - 4th/5th Grade Math

• MaryHadley Ozborn - K4 Assistant

• Brianne Quarles - K2 Assistant

• Kristin Richardson - 2nd Grade Teacher

• Nicole Rojas - K4 Teacher

• Lauren Snyder - Guidance Counselor

• Abby Souder - 2nd Grade Teacher

If you follow our school on social media, you have undoubtedly seen the #learningisfunatbbs hashtag at the end of posts on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. I wish I could tell you that the creation and implementation of the hashtag were developed in some well-thought-out planning session, but that is not the case. I literally used it one time as a hashtag that was describing something fun happening on our campus, and it has grown from there to hundreds of social media posts from there. Our teachers take great pride in making learning fun each day.

Tomorrow, we are going to do something we have never done before with students, and it is going to be A LOT of fun! We are taking our first-ever international trip with students to Costa Rica. Our hope is that this will be the first of many international offerings and will happen every other year so all students will have the opportunity to travel internationally at least once in their 4th or 5th-grade years. This trip was the brainchild of Ms. Connell. She spends considerable time in class teaching our students about various cultures around the world, and now is offering them the chance to go experience the culture first hand.
Our itinerary includes a canal tour, touring a school where our students will be able to see how students there learn, visiting the Tortuguero National Park, a Red-eyed tree frog night walk, visiting hot springs, visiting Tenorio National Volcano Park, a horseback ride, as well as many other things. Our trip will start on the Gulf of Mexico in Tortuguero and students (and parents!) will trek across the country will conclude in Guanacaste on the Pacific Ocean.

I have been able to travel to many different parts of the world and am a strong believer that there is a strong educational AND spiritual benefit for children to see the world at an early age. We hope you are able to follow along via social media (Instagram and Facebook) as we share highlights from the trip. We also hope that some of you will be joining us on our next trip with your child where you can experience that learning REALLY is fun at Brainerd Baptist School!

Mrs. Susan Ledbetter

Each May, as we inch towards the final week of the school year, my Facebook page always populates with memories of previous graduating classes from our school as well as pictures of my own children who have now all graduated from Brainerd Baptist School as well as their respective high schools. This week two incredible teachers will wrap up their careers at Brainerd Baptist School. There are certain names that just pop into a mind when someone utters “Brainerd Baptist School”. Two of the names that one would undoubtedly hear if you ran into an old friend and the topic turned to BBS would be Mrs. Ledbetter and Mrs. Starnes. As I was looking through some of those previously mentioned Facebook memories this week, I was fortunate to find pictures of my own children with both Mrs. Ledbetter and Mrs. Starnes. They were all blessed to sit under the teaching of both of these ladies. As parents, there is no better reward than when someone outside of your family invests and loves your children. I can say with certainty that both of these ladies did that with my children as well as hundreds of others over the last several decades.

Earlier today hundreds of former students, parents, former teachers, and family and friends gathered to celebrate the special careers of Mrs. Ledbetter and Mrs. Starnes. Many memories were shared as students told funny stories or simply said “thank you” to these ladies for their love and dedication to their life’s work.

Mrs. Ledbetter is completing her 35th year of service to our school. She began as a PE teacher and then moved to 5th grade Language Arts and Reading. She served in that capacity until this past year when she moved to our Learning Center. Mrs. Ledbetter has had the joy of exposing hundreds of students to some classics in literature like Where the Red Fern Grows, The Boy in Striped Pajamas, The Westing Game, and many others. For many students, this marked the first time in their young lives that they experienced an emotional interaction with books. I spoke with a student at the reception today who remembered crying in class at the end of Where the Red Fern Grows. It is funny the memories that are seared in the minds of young children during elementary school.

Mrs. Beverly Starnes

Mrs. Starnes is finishing her 22nd year of educating in her own fun, unique, and laid-back style. Mrs. Starnes has taught both 3rd and 4th grades before moving into her role as 4th and 5th grade Science and Social Studies teacher in the last several years. Mrs. Starnes has displayed a way to connect with students, unlike few teachers I have ever known. It didn’t matter if you were new to BBS or had been here since K3, whether you were incredibly outgoing or shy, Mrs. Starnes connected in a way that made each student feel special. They knew that they were important and loved by her. I have often said that in my 17 years at Brainerd Baptist School, I think more former students have come back to visit Mrs. Starnes than any other teacher. My favorite story about Mrs. Starnes illustrates her style, which can sometimes be a little “spontaneous”. Several years ago, she called the school office in panic requesting help. She was worried she was having some sort of medical emergency because it appeared that things were getting “dark”. We rushed up to her classroom only to find that she had her sunglasses on instead of her regular eyeglasses on. Stories like this make us all laugh because we can all see it happening.

It is impossible to measure the impact that each of these ladies has had over the span of their careers and this was clearly evident today as hundreds of people stood in very long lines to congratulate their former teachers. These ladies have been constant professionals at BBS for as long as I can remember. They are the ultimate examples of teachers who love their students, have high standards and hold students accountable for their work and actions, and work well with their other team members. Susan and Beverly will be missed as they move into retirement, and they have certainly set a high bar for the teachers that come behind them.

I frequently talk about the fact that our teachers do an amazing job of making learning. Our students are immersed in active learning each and every day. I have asked our music teacher (Suzanne Breedlove) to share about a fun and unique way that she incorporated music across all grades done with students over the last couple of years. In the post below, Mrs. Breedlove shares how she recently combined March Madness and music.

During March at Brainerd Baptist School, we celebrated “Music In Our Schools” month.  For more than 30 years, the National Association for Music Education has set aside this month to celebrate music education in our schools.  The purpose is to raise awareness of the importance of music in all students’ lives and the benefits it brings to all people alike.  

Over the past five years, we have celebrated Music In Our Schools month in different ways. Typically we would have some sort of special message over the morning announcements.  We have had music trivia where students have sent their answers to me and are entered into a daily drawing.  We have had “Mystery Singers” in which brave faculty members have been recorded singing a song, the song has been played in the morning over the intercom, and the students had to try and guess who the faculty member was that was singing. We have also been able to have special musicians come and perform for the students throughout the day - groups from the Chattanooga Symphony Orchestra and even a Bluegrass band!  

For 2022 Music In Our Schools month, I decided to follow the theme of “March Madness” and made my own bracket incorporating different songs - “Old School Songs” vs. “New School Songs”.  Some examples of these were “Let It Be” (Old School), “Coat of Many Colors” (Old School), “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” (New School), and “Happy” (New School).  Each morning, I played two songs over the announcements, and the classes voted on their favorite of the two, knocking one of the songs out and ultimately dwindling the bracket down to the final two songs.  Students and teachers alike had fun with this!  The winner of this year’s bracket was “Livin’ On A Prayer” by Bon Jovi.

During MIOSM, I also took the time to highlight the Brainerd Baptist School Chorus.  The chorus is made up of 3rd, 4th, and 5th-grade students who meet once a week after school to rehearse.  In the past (pre-covid), the chorus has been able to go out into the community to perform in places such as nursing homes, and Christmas parades and the chorus even participated in a competition at Six Flags Over Georgia where they won first place in their division. This school year, the chorus was able to begin rehearsing in February, and they actually performed on the announcements on the last day of Music In Our Schools Month.

Music In Our Schools Month at Brainerd Baptist School is always a fun time!  It is a time when the students are engaged in the music classroom - learning about composers, playing games, playing instruments, and preparing for their Grandparents’ Day program.  And it is a time when they are engaged as a community - chorus performances, working together to answer the daily trivia, and voting as homerooms on songs/faculty.  We love MIOSM at BBS!

For the last several years we have invited our school families to participate in a friendly competition for March Madness. For many of us, March Madness is our favorite sporting event of the year. I absolutely LOVE the craziness that surrounds tournament basketball. Already this week we have witnessed our own University of Chattanooga make national headlines for their thrilling, last-second overtime victory to punch their ticket to the NCAA tournament. In just a few minutes, my beloved Tennessee Volunteers will play their biggest rival (in basketball) the Kentucky Wildcats for a chance to play for the SEC Championship. Over the next 24 hours, the tournament seedings and matchups will be announced. If you would like to participate in our matchup, the details on how to participate are below. Each person can submit up to 2 brackets per entry. The thought is that students AND parents can both participate. We will have a prize for the top student bracket as well as the top adult bracket. Remember - you must have an account with ESPN/Disney to participate. Brackets must be submitted BEFORE the tournament begins on Thursday, March 17.

Get in the action now by clicking here

Group: Bobcat Pickers 4546626
Password: GoVols (I know some of you will take issue with this password!)

I also want to give this disclaimer - I can not provide tech support if you experience log-in issues. You will need to contact ESPN’s support page for that.

We are in the final week of Black History Month and I wanted to highlight just a few of the amazing learning activities and chapel talks that have taken place at Brainerd Baptist School. 

Throughout the grades, daily our students studied the lives of various African Americans, such as: Mae Jemison, Jesse Owens, Booker T. Washington, Jackie Robinson, George Washington Carver, Harriet Tubman, Ruby Bridges, and Rosa Parks. In their classes they read stories, wrote stories, compared and contrasted individuals, created crafts and even did experiments. For example, some of our students created Freedom Quilts (just as Harriet Tubman did), made rockets that listed facts about Mae Jemison, walked through footsteps of Thurgood Marshall’s life by making a timeline of the events.

As they have been studying and learning about these individuals, our student body also enjoyed learning through an interactive billboard in our hallway. They had competitions amongst each other to match the accomplishments of various African Americans with the correct photo.

Each Wednesday this month, we welcomed some outstanding community leaders on our campus to speak to our students. Highlights of those chapel talks are below.

Coach Webb kicked off Black History Month on February 2nd. He has been our AD and PE teacher for the last two years and is also a member of Brainerd Baptist Church. He asked our students to consider the story of Joseph and explained how Joseph was sold into slavery and taken to Egypt. Joseph was able to rise in the ranks of Pharaoh’s government, and while his brothers intended it for evil, God intended it for good. Joseph was able to bring his father and 11 brothers down to Egypt to escape a devastating famine. His main message to our students was that the life of Joseph demonstrates God’s ability to transform underserved adversities into a positive result.

Celeste Bradley spoke in chapel on February 9th. She is currently serving her second term as a Trustee on the board of Brainerd Baptist School. She is the mom of Spencer (BBS alumni) and Austin (5th grade) and is well respected in the realm of law. She has worked as a consultant, investigator, and employment/healthcare lawyer for almost two decades. She asked our students three questions: Why do we celebrate Black History Month, What is Diversity (vs Inclusion) and What does the Bible say about how we should treat others who do not look, talk, think or act like us? Her main message revolved around Revelation 7:9. After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.

Ivan and Kilzma Brown were our chapel speakers on February 16th. Ivan and Kilzma serve in ministry as Pastors of Pneuma Christian Center. They are the parents of Reagyn (BBS alumni) and Lacye (5th grade). Their message to our students was "There is one race. The human race. African American History is for all of us to celebrate."  What fun it was to play "Do You Like?" in chapel with them and learn about many African American inventors, such as George Crum (potato chips), Lonnie Johnson (SuperSoaker), Alfred Cralle (ice cream scoop), Henry Sampson (cell phone), & John Lee (pencil sharpener). 

Brian Bush spoke in chapel on February 23th. He is a Chattanooga native, lawyer, community advocate, and former Assistant District Attorney. He encouraged an interactive atmosphere asking our students to pair up and discuss why we celebrate Black History Month, what it means to be fair and who can be defined as heroes. His main message to our students: "Our faith calls us to seek fairness, justice, and love." 

”Black history is American history, Black culture is American culture, and Black stories are essential to the ongoing story of America — our faults, our struggles, our progress, and our aspirations. Shining a light on Black history today is as important to understanding ourselves and growing stronger.” Taken from the White House’s Proclamation on Black History Month 2022.

In the fall of 2022, we added our first K2 class and we have really enjoyed having these students on campus each day. The addition of this program has been very helpful for our families who wish to have their children at the same place. We are excited to announce that we are adding another section of K2 for the fall of 2022 that will double our capacity for two-year-olds.
We spent last summer preparing for their new addition by completely renovating our music classroom and turning it into K2 space. A bathroom was added as well as new furniture, ceilings, new LED lighting, and a new curriculum. As we prepare to grow again, we are also planning on converting the space right next to our current K2 program into our new room that will mirror our existing K2 space. We filled the class without ever advertising that we were starting a new program and ended up creating a significant waiting list. This demand showed us that there would be significant interest in adding a second class. Additionally, we also believe that adding a second class will enable our K2 team to better collaborate and will further benefit our students.
We are currently adding students for the 2nd class as well as looking for another teacher for our K2 program. We have openings in our Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Monday-Friday classes. Both programs have the same hours - 8:15-12:30 pm. If you are interested in enrolling your child in our K2 program, you may click here. If you are interested in learning more about the teaching position, you may click here.

Rendering of the new project

As I write this post, I recognize that I need to do a better job of keeping this space updated. I have thought about it several times, but updating the blog tends to be something that gets “pushed to the bottom of the list” on a busy day. I usually refrain from making any type of resolutions each year because I know I am just setting myself up for failure. I like to set goals instead, and this year, I am setting the goal to update this blog at least once a month and hoping to do so more frequently than this. I hope to give our families a reason to check this section of our website. This post is about something we have been working on most of the fall semester.

Several weeks ago a zoning ordinance notice was placed right in front of our school (It was a large green sign). Some of you may have noticed and wondered what was happening. Our next area of focus for improvement is our main entrance. For those of you who have been around Brainerd Baptist School very long know, this has only been our main entrance for two years. In the summer of 2020 we completed the largest construction project in our school’s history. We built a new library, STEM, and Learning Center (called The Hub), a new upper school office, new classrooms, and new administrative offices. This project created a new main entrance for students and parents. Our next project will focus on the outside of the new entrance and specifically targets student safety during drop-off and pick-up, better access to our building (including ADA access) from our parking lot, and the overall aesthetic appearance of the space. I describe these areas of focus in detail below.

Rendering of newly designed canopy

• Safety - This has been a concern of ours that predates the school office moving to this area. If you have ever participated in drop-off or pick-up, you know how busy this space is. There are a lot of adults, children, and staff trying to get children in or out of cars. Additionally, the crosswalk leads into a space that can often be dangerous as well. Parents may sometimes be watching their child(ren) walk into the building and not always see school families walking in front of their vehicle. The new design addresses these issues as there will be a dedicated walkway that directs parents to a space in the center. Additionally, a new sidewalk will be poured that will tie into the existing sidewalk that runs around the property.

• Functionality - If you have ever witnessed drop-off on a rainy morning - you know how difficult it is. We try to get two cars under the canopy at the same time so children do not get wet, and the reality is, there is simply not enough space to do this safely. Cars (SUVs!) are much larger now than when the canopy was built 50+ years ago. The new drop-off will be much wider allowing up to 4 SUVs to pull under a covered space at one time. It will also be several feet higher, allowing larger vehicles to pass under the space. We have had multiple occasions where vehicles have gotten stuck under the canopy. Additionally, we will be extending our portico to the end of the building. This will also provide cover for children to be loaded and unloaded at the corner of the building, helping speed up the drop-off and pick-up process. We are also redesigning the way parents pull into the space. Currently, there is an island at the Mayfair entrance, and a large gas meter by the building that makes it difficult for larger vehicles to turn into the drop-off zone. The new design will make it much easier (and hopefully quicker) for parents to navigate this space. 

• Updated Appearance - Because this is now the main entrance for our current and prospective families, it is also important that this space look nice. The new updates will not only address safety and functionality concerns, but they will also make the space look nicer and will tie in with the architecture on the other side of the building. These updates will also be noticeable for new families arriving on campus for the first time.

This project was recently approved by the zoning commission in early December and our civil engineers are working with the traffic division of the city for approval of the project. We will start applying for permits in the spring with our goal of starting this project in June and completing construction over the summer and having these improvements in place for when school starts back in August.

We are still fundraising for this project. If you would like to learn more, I will be happy to provide more details. We are grateful for families that have already committed to this project and are looking for a couple of more families that would like to help fund a project that will have a major impact on our school community for many years to come.

I have often said (and written!) that identifying the right people to join our faculty is one of the most important jobs a Head of School does. Our school culture is one of the things that make our school so special. It is very important to find teachers who want to not only excel in the classroom with students but also with parent relationships as well as work well with their team. Each Spring, schools all across the country (and even the world!) begin the process of trying to replace faculty and staff that are retiring, moving on to other positions, or filling new positions from growth. Adding new teachers always brings a sense of excitement, but also a little trepidation, as well, as I always desire that our new faculty will be a great fit for our school. This is a process that is bathed in prayer and much time and conversation is devoted to this process. The Lord has blessed this process for many years and we are excited to have the following people joining our faculty and staff this fall.
You may click on the name for a brief bio of each new staff member.

• Mrs. Christine van der Meer, Art - Christine is excited to return to Brainerd Baptist School. She previously taught art here from 2008-2015 before taking a few years off to have her children.

• Mrs. Sam Walker, 1st Grade - Sam is excited to be moving into the classroom after spending a year working in our K4 class as an assistant.

• Mrs. Alex Kane, K2 Teacher- Alex will be leading our new K2 program. Alex previously worked in the preschool at Silverdale Baptist Academy.

• Mr. Isaac Johnston, Director of IT- It has been a busy summer for Isaac. He graduated college and moved to Chattanooga to begin working at Brainerd Baptist School. He looks forward to getting to know our students and enjoying his new city.

• Mrs. Amie Hanson, K2 Assistant - Amie is excited to be joining Brainerd Baptist School working with our new K2 program.

• Ms. Kristin Richardson, 1st Assistant/Maternity Leave for K5 - Kristin is no stranger to BBS literally growing up walking the halls of BBS. She will be working in two roles this year- 1st-grade assistant and K5 maternity leave. She will be teaching in both K5 classes while teachers are on maternity leave. When not working in our K5, she will be working in 1st grade.

• Mrs. Brenda Christian, K3 Assistant - Brenda is excited to be joining the faculty of Brainerd Baptist School. She has extensive experience working with children and as a teacher assistant. She has spent the last ten years working as a paraprofessional in the Whitfield County Public School system.

• Mrs. Anamarie Davis, K4 Assistant - Anamarie will be moving into a classroom assistant position after spending last year as a substitute teacher and also working at Sports Barn. She is looking forward to working with our K4 students each day.

• Mrs. Nicole Rojas, K4 Assistant - Nicole has been a parent at Brainerd Baptist School for the last two years and previously taught in our local public school system for 10 years. She looks forward to returning to the classroom and helping students learn

A wall is being removed in a new 3rd grade classroom. New carpet and paint is next.

The title of this post comes from a question that is frequently asked of me by parents, students, and other folks I encounter throughout the summer. I’m pretty sure people have a completely different vision of what summer looks like than what is reality. I think our students envision me sitting in my office watching Netflix or shooting basketball in the gym. The reality is, summer is a VERY busy time at most schools. Last summer was probably the busiest summer I have ever experienced in my 20+ years in education as we dealt with a massive construction project and just for fun, added in preparing plans on how to conduct class during a global pandemic! We are hoping (and expecting) that this summer will be a little quieter. Even so, I thought I would give you a glimpse of what all happens on a typical summer. My days are filled with a variety of things that keep us busy. Here are some things that have been happening this week:

• Admissions- YEP…it never ends! Just this week, we have had 6 families on campus touring for the fall. We have experienced a number of out-of-town families touring in the last month that are relocating to Chattanooga. We have actually done 3 tours on the weekends to accommodate their schedules.

• Construction Projects- While not at the level of last year, there is always something happening in the summer. This summer (actually today!) we have construction taking place in a new 3rd-grade classroom where they are removing a wall to open up the classroom. Additionally, we also have construction happening in our new K2 classroom where bathrooms are being added.

• Personnel Changes- Time has been spent this week interviewing candidates for open positions that we had. While most of our teaching positions are filled before summer starts, it is not uncommon to fill non-teaching positions during the summer.

• Building updates- Summer is a time for floors to be stripped and waxed, halls to be refreshed with paint, and all sorts of other types of things like replacing dry erase boards, bulletin boards, coat hooks, and many other small things. Additionally, we will typically have a special project that we are working on to update something. This year, we are focusing on our 2nd and 3rd-grade hallway and are planning on updating all the lights to LED.

• Curriculum, Class lists & Inservice- Each year considerable time is spent updating the consumable pieces of our curriculum as well as overall updates. Robin Morris does an incredible job of overseeing this. We also have to get build each class, update this information in FACTS, and get inservice planned for teachers. Our teaches spend time in training each year during this time to prepare (and improve) for the upcoming year.

As you can see, summer work is required for the school year to start smoothly in the fall. If you are on campus visiting the library this summer, stop by and I’ll pause my Netflix to say “hello.”

Over the last few weeks, I’ve had multiple parents ask, “What are you doing up by the garden?” While we have used this space as an outdoor classroom for many years, COVID has encouraged us to be more intentional in the creation of an area where students could gather outside. Nurse Adams and Mr. Kane began working on formalizing a plan back in the fall. Over the past few months things began to fall in place. We still have some work to do, but are excited about the opportunities this will provide for our students.

Below, Mr. Kane talks about the philosophy of and future opportunities for this space.

How has COVID-19 pushed our school to be resilient and creative? One way is our venture into the construction of an outdoor classroom space. Children need to be able to move, breath fresh air, and experience nature. It was our desire to create an interactive and simple outdoor area where they can do just that! 

Numerous research articles talk about the benefits of getting students outdoors (something we have done for many years at BBS). We know that students thrive when they interact with nature. An outdoor space allows for movement, hands-on learning, and engaging lessons. Students tend to be more attentive and have the chance to learn using their senses. Famous architect Frank Loyd Wright said it best with this quote, “I go to nature every day for inspiration in the day’s work.”

This Outdoor Classroom project currently incorporates our garden area and in the future, we are planning to establish additional outdoor learning spaces as well. We are looking forward to students and teachers being able to use these areas. At Brainerd Baptist School, we focus on developing the whole child: mind, body, and spirit. 

What’s new in this space for Spring 2021

• Tree-stump seating for an entire class

• Teaching space with a covered whiteboard as a focal point

• Clean & dry landscaping to define classroom area (railroad ties and pine straw)

Future plans for additions:

• 2nd classroom space

• Improved green spaces

• Outdoor art project

• Refresh garden and shed

We cannot create spaces like this without the help and support of many!  We want to say “thank you” to BBS parent Brian Martin from Martin Building and Construction for donating the supplies and equipment used in the construction of the teaching space. We also want to thank you to our Board of Trustees who covered the cost of the railroad ties and pine straw with their generous support. Last but not least, we thank Jessi Oates at DXPrinting and former BBS parent Donald Kane (Mr. Kane’s dad!) for donating the sign and white-board.

If you have followed any of our social media accounts at Brainerd Baptist School, you have undoubtedly seen the hashtag #learningisfunatbbs a time or two! Our faculty are committed to making the learning process fun and that literally happens hundreds of times a day throughout our campus. We believe children should laugh and enjoy coming to school each day and a fun environment helps make this a reality. When the pandemic hit, Ms. Connell came up with the idea of capturing videos of our Heimlich training doll (Hank!) and me doing various things around the school during the lockdown. What started as an idea for a funny video turned into many videos that were viewed thousands of times. I was honestly surprised at how many people watched me act silly (something that is not difficult for me) while talking to a doll. Several months back, I was eating dinner at a restaurant and a lady recognized me and asked me about the Hank videos. She told me that her kids enjoyed watching them and they don’t even attend our school!

For several years now, our faculty have had fun in the last chapel before Christmas Break performing our annual Christmas Skit (under the direction of Mrs. McCurdy). We have never mentioned to the students that the skits were happening, but they have almost become expected with students AND parents asking, “when is that funny chapel going to be?” This year, a COVID exposure forced us to cancel our last chapel and our performance. We were disappointed to not be able to laugh and create fun memories with our students (and poking fun at ourselves in the process). I’m not sure if the teacher video submission happened because we missed performing our annual skit, or several of us (especially Nurse Adams) just became enthralled with the “prancercise” movement. Either way, the idea was born for the creation of a faculty video into our annual video competition that highlights student health. If you have never heard of the term “Prancercise”, this video will probably not be as funny to you, but it is important to know that YES - this is apparently a real thing (go ahead and click on the link to see BEFORE you watch our video). Our teachers used this as the inspiration for our own health video. As always, the BBS faculty rose to the occasion covering all details like hair and costumes. While our video did not take home the top prize, we do believe that our students enjoyed getting to watch it in chapel recently.

On a more serious note, we want to say “congratulations” to London Stone for winning this year’s video competition with her combination of exercise knowledge and the song “My Shot” from the musical Hamilton!

The title of this post may be a little misleading. While we typically imagine Christmas scenes when we think of the term - “Tis the season,” our finance office would use that term to describe what happens right after Christmas each year. Each January, many of our parents begin the annual task of gathering the necessary information needed to file their taxes in April. While we certainly are happy to help our parents obtain this information, we also thought it may be beneficial to explain how this information may be found at any time (like when you are working on your taxes at 2:30 on a Saturday afternoon!) without having to email or call the school. I have asked Chris Shields, our Chief Financial Officer, to explain how parents can find this information through their FACTS account. He provides step-by-step directions below.

To quickly find the information needed to claim childcare expenses on your taxes, first log into your FACTS account.

• From the main screen next to 'Payment Plan & Billing' click on 'View Details'. This will take you to the 'Activity Details' page.

• Under your name and customer number will be a light blue button that says, 'View Payment Summary'. Clicking this will take you to the 'Payment Summary' page which will show what you have paid.

• There is a drop-down menu where you can select which tax year you are looking for and it should default to 2020. It will show the portions of the 19/20 school year and the 20/21 school year that occurred in 2020. The school's address and Tax ID Number is in the upper right-hand corner.

As always, if you have any questions about your tuition or after school care accounts, you may always contact me via email or phone at 423-622-3873.

I purposefully avoid New Year’s resolutions. I am well aware of the fact that I will almost certainly have abandoned my new found decisions by February. That said, I have made it a goal to do a better job of writing more in 2021. I really do have the best of intentions when it comes to writing blog posts more frequently, but I sometimes also suffer from poor follow through on those commitments! I have asked Margaret Hopping to write a post about the effects we are seeing in children from COVID-19. We are all well aware of the drastic changes that have been implemented into pretty much every facet of our lives since March 13, 2020. Margaret and her team at neuroBridge are a great resource for BBS students, parents, AND teachers. We are thankful for the partnership we have with them to serve students on our campus, and also provide support for our teachers to help students succeed in the class every day. We were excited to have a dedicated space (our Learning Center in the new Hub) for them to serve our students this year. In the post below, Margaret shares some GREAT information that we must remember as we learn to deal with the “new normal” of living through a global pandemic. It is crazy to think that our children will probably always remember how our world has changed as a result of COVID.

Welcome to 2021! Who can relate to the saying “Keeping your head above water”? ME!! When I hear that phrase, I think back to many seasons in my life when I felt like I was either drowning or gasping for air. Now we’ve added, “parenting during a global pandemic” to the proverbial list of skill sets we need to support our children. These times are unprecedented for certain,  and I believe we are all curious about the impact the pandemic will have long term on our children. The good news? Studies are showing that the resiliency of humankind, specifically of our children, will power us through the obstacles of the past 10 months. 

While experts have seen evidence of some regression in our children socially, academically, and developmentally, they suspect that with basic support and protection children will show remarkable strength and hardiness. Diana Devecha, Ph.D. writes about kids, their support systems, and resiliency, saying, “Some children may need a little more attention and support than others because of their age or their sensitivities.”  

So how do we know if a child needs extra support during this time?  Consider some important developmental milestones. The Center for Disease Control Child Development Special Interest section says that children ages  3-6 are beginning to develop social skills needed to play and work with other children; beginning to test their physical, behavioral, and emotional limits; becoming more skilled at jumping, running, and throwing and catching; and being introduced to and becoming independent in tool use, including pencils and scissors for academic skills. Children ages 6-11 are developing at a rapid rate both cognitively and emotionally; showing more independence from family; thinking about the future and understanding one’s place in the world; wanting to establish friendships & be liked by friends; starting to form stronger, more complex friendships; becoming more aware of their body; engaging in more academic challenges; beginning to see others’ point of view, and having an increased attention span. 

In 2020 we noticed children experiencing challenges in many areas of development: 

• Delayed fine motor skills including poor handwriting

• Decreased gross motor skills including bilateral coordination and crossing midline

• Delayed visual perceptual skills including decreased speed reading and writing

• Increased dependence

• Missing opportunities for learning & socialization 

• Worry about the world around them

• Confusion 

• An overwhelming sense of uncertainty

• Falling back to old behaviors

How can we help our kids at home and at school? They will benefit from structure and routine, such as consistent meal times and bedtime. Sharing the day’s schedule or having a family calendar can provide added predictability. Being in school allows them to safely maintain social connections. Provide opportunities to run, roll, and climb, and don’t forget fine motor skills! 

neuroBridge provided over 130 free screenings in the fall of 2020.  We will continue to work closely with teachers and your children while monitoring the children who were flagged in the fall and addressing new concerns from teachers and parents. Together we can give your children the support and skills they need to navigate school and home with confidence. 

Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns. neuroBridge provides Occupational Therapy, Speech and Language Therapy, and Clinical Psychology. 

Margaret Hopping is the co-founder of neuroBridge.

Fundraising in a pandemic has been an interesting endeavor. There were all sorts of questions. Should and/or could we even conduct a fundraiser? Would people support it? Was it the right time?  Would it be perceived as insensitive? Could we do it safely? How could we do it in a way that was fun and exciting for our students? We bit the bullet and decided to give it a try because we are in a business (and we have to run as such) that depends on our constituents' generosity. And, it turned out that our students had a BLAST!

The fundraisers we do have specific purposes. As our Annual Fund chairs state so well in our recent video, we target specific projects throughout our school that we would like to improve that tuition dollars simply do not cover. Once again, under the direction of Director of Development Ellen Baggenstoss and her assistant Tina Bowen, our most recent fundraiser was a HUGE success. Over $40,000 was raised in our Bobcat Spartan Color Run edition. I am excited to share how those monies will benefit our students and how you, as parents, can see that your support truly makes a difference in our school. Because of the Color Run's success, the following projects that represent over $35,000 of improvements will be completed in the next couple of weeks.

• New Turf - Over the last few months, we have had a drainage issue that led to the turf in our K3 and K4 play area becoming a tripping hazard. The ground under the turf was the issue. We recently had that issue addressed, but we had to cut up the turf to get to the affected area. You have probably noticed that a large piece of turf has been missing. I am happy to say new turf has been ordered and will be installed in the next couple of weeks. 

• Gym Repair - The gym is the oldest part of our facility and is over 90 years old! We recently had the roof replaced, but unfortunately, before it was replaced, a fairly significant water leak came down the sidewall of our gym and did extensive damage to the wall. The paint has bubbled up and regularly flakes off, and if we are honest, it just doesn't look good. This will be repaired and painted very soon. 

• Refinished Gym Floor - If you have spent any time in our gym, you are probably aware that our floor needs refinishing. I believe it has been about 11 years since it was last refinished. With the amount of traffic that the floor sees each day (and on most nights as many volleyball and basketball teams use it for practice), it is well past overdue in needing this work. We can not wait to see how fresh the new paint on the walls and the refinished floor make this space look. 

• New Lights - As you all know, we recently completed our construction project on the 2nd floor (Hub and 3 new classrooms). As a part of this project, we also replaced the lights in our hallway with new LED lights. They have made an incredible difference in the way our hallway looks. We will be finishing all other areas on the 2nd floor that were not around the construction area with new LED lights. This means our 2nd and 3rd-grade hall and the area behind the gym, where are Spanish and Art classes are. In addition to being much more efficient, they are brighter and simply look better. They also require much less maintenance than our traditional lights. 

• New Desk Partitions - We originally purchased over 200 desk partitions for our 1st-5th grade students to help ensure our students are safe while in class each day. The partitions do not work well for our younger students because of their size. They are being replaced with new clear partitions. They have arrived and will begin appearing in all 1st and 2nd classrooms in the next week. 

BECAUSE YOU GAVE, we can complete these projects for our students and school.  Every donation, large and small, added up to be significant and make a great impact! Thank you for your support, willingness to participate, and, most importantly, your belief in our school's mission and vision. 

Last Spring, we began discussing plans to create a new committee at Brainerd Baptist School to serve as a resource for our teachers as they navigate social, political, and curricular issues. Shortly after beginning work on this, the pandemic hit, and our focus turned to virtual classrooms and how we could create an exceptional learning environment online. With all that happened over the summer,  we quickly came back to focus on the need for such a committee. We all witnessed what seemed to be a never-ending loop of news stories that highlighted racial, social, and political tensions in our community and world.  Many of the stories on the nightly news and in our newspapers are overwhelming, heartbreaking, and difficult to process. As we returned to class this fall, we really wanted to create a resource that would help our teachers work through issues that can be controversial in nature. Therefore, the Diversity Council took shape. 

The purpose of the Diversity Council will be to form a collaboration between the administration, staff, parents, and community members. It will act as an advisory group to the Head of School and his designees on topics related to equality, access, and diversity. The Council will address topics such as cultural awareness in areas such as curriculum, recruitment, and retention of diverse staff and students, and other areas as identified by the staff and headmaster. The members of the Diversity Council would include a cross-section of staff, administration, parents, and potentially a community member. The members should include individuals from diverse ethnic backgrounds as representatives of BBS, including African American, Indian, Caucasian, Asian, and Hispanic.

The goal of the Council will be to enhance Brainerd Baptist School’s educational practices while monitoring and ensuring that we welcome, affirm, and give value to all student’s cultural backgrounds. This diversity awareness would further our mission of expanding minds and preparing hearts.

The following parents and faculty members have agreed to serve on our initial Diversity Council: Parents - Natalie Allen, Benton Bilbrey, Celeste Bradley, Ruthie Church, Roby Isaac, Katie Landers, and Allison Pettit; Faculty - Ellen Baggenstoss, Sean Corcoran, Amy Neal, Beverly Starnes, Rebecca Stubblefield, and Lucas Webb