The Athens School System, Limestone County School System and a handful of private schools around the county have worked tirelessly to provide a safe and supportive learning environment for their students and teachers — and their efforts are paying off. 

Prior to the beginning of the 2024-2025 school year, Limestone County Schools celebrated the grand opening of Elkmont Elementary School. The state-of-the-art facility — complete with multiple touch screens and sensory rooms for overstimulated students — accommodated more than 600 students from the old Elkmont Elementary and the recently closed Piney Chapel Elementary School.

“This project has been a longtime coming for the great people of this community,” Limestone County Schools Superintendent Randy Shearouse told The News Courier in a previous interview. “It’s been talked about for a longtime, and it’s so nice to see it finally come to fruition. This great facility will bring a lot of pride to the town of Elkmont.”

Also prior to the 2024-2025, members of the Limestone County Commission unanimously decided to approve the pay increase for retired school resource officers to as much as $52,000 per year.

The unanimous vote on the matter came after the Limestone County Board of Education agreed to pay for 60 percent of the new salary and benefits during their meeting on July 30, 2024. The County Commission was responsible for the remaining 40 percent of the salary and benefits.

Alabama Act 2023-334, from the Retirement Systems of Alabama, went into effect on Aug. 1, 2023, and it permitted certain retired individuals to serve without the suspension of his or her retirement benefits. The act allowed for the passage of the new approved pay increase, which will allow for hopefully more retirees to become a SRO. 

Limestone County Sheriff Joshua McLaughlin was present at the commission’s meeting and he told The News Courier that he was able to fill every county school with an SRO thanks to this salary increase.  

“The importance of an SRO in a school speaks for itself,” McLaughlin said. “Many of the other schools had already increased their pay, so we did lose a lot of SROs because they were going to school’s where they were getting paid a lot more money. The school board and the County Commission realizing there was an immediate need to do this allowed me to fill those spots to start this school year.”

In addition to the progress made in safety and student achievement, both school systems have also been working to support the teachers and provide them with the resources they need to succeed. 

It was recently announced that Free 2 Teach, an education-focused nonprofit organization based out of North Alabama, would be expanding to both school systems in Limestone County.

The expansion will add 25 schools, growing the organization’s impact to a total of 113 public schools across Madison and Limestone Counties. The announcement was made on the historic downtown square in Athens, on Friday, Feb. 14, where elected  officials stood beside school leaders, teachers and supporters to share the news.

“We are so thrilled to expand our organization to serve the teachers and students of Limestone County,”  Free 2 Teach CEO Alison Kling said in a release. “Limestone County is an incredible place and it is such a joy to  partner with this community to support educators across all public schools, so that together we can  ensure that every child in our public schools has access to an equitable and excellent education.”

Free 2 Teach provides teachers with free classroom supplies and resources, and their expansion to Athens City Schools and Limestone County Schools is expected to make a significant impact on teacher morale. In its 14-year history the organization has donated $13.9 million  in supplies at its free teacher store.

“Athens City Schools is thrilled to welcome Free 2 Teach as a new partner in our community,” Athens City Schools Superintendent Beth Patton said. “This  collaboration helps to ensure that every teacher has access to essential classroom materials to inspire  and empower our students for future success.” 

Hannah Kilpatrick, a science teacher at Clements High School, spoke at the press conference where several local and state elected officials came together to celebrate the joyous event.

“I  have been wishing for an organization like Free 2 Teach in Limestone County for a while now, and I am so happy this wish is coming true,” Kilpatrick said. “These supplies will allow me to do projects with  students that we may not have been able to do otherwise and will allow my students to have what they need.”

As the 2024-2025 school year winds down, both school systems are already looking to the future, preparing for the next generation of students. 

Pre-Kindergarten registration for Limestone County Schools opened on Jan. 15 and will close on March 15. To be eligible, children must be 4 years old on or before Sept. 1, have a valid email address and live in the school district he/she is zoned for. For more information, please visit www.lck12.org.

Athens City Schools Kindergarten registration opened on Feb. 24 and will close on March 21. For more information, please visit acs-k12.org/kindergarten or call 256-233-6600.