School Is Small but Mighty
Many Roane County residents are graduates of Midway High School, which has been around since 1947. Which just might explain the school’s strong community support.
“There’s a lot of history,” says Scott Mason, principal of Midway High School. “Some of our students’ parents and grandparents have gone here, so the community feels a certain sense of ownership in the school – as it should.”
That support has helped Midway get some national recognition.
The school recently earned a bronze medal designation on U.S. News and World Report’s 2009 list of America’s Best High Schools. Mason attributes the ranking to several factors, including the school’s small size – a student population of just 286 – a dedicated faculty and a supportive community. Additionally, 80 percent of the faculty has a master’s degree or higher, and the administration is always on the lookout for ways to improve and expand its offerings.
For instance, in 2008 Midway added new classes to its curriculum, including multimedia, creative writing, physics, health sciences, criminal justice and networking. Part of the Roane County Schools system, Midway also has access to neighboring Hamilton County’s Virtual School, a program that allows students to take some classes through the Internet.
“We also have the dual-enrollment program with Roane State Community College,” Mason says. This allows students to earn college credit by taking college classes concurrently with their last two years of high school.
“This year we have 11 students taking college-level classes,” he says. “Another option is the co-op program, where seniors can leave school to go to work for half a day and earn high school credit.”
Many Midway students take advantage of the school’s career technical education offerings, such as agriculture, business and technology, marketing, and family and consumer science. And many make use of Tennessee’s HOPE Scholarship to help them go on to college.
“The whole purpose is to give students career options,” Mason says.
Sports are big at Midway, too, despite the small student body. Athletes can take part in football, baseball, softball, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls golf, and girls soccer.
But Midway isn’t the only school that’s flourishing in the region. The entire Roane County Schools system enjoys an excellent reputation. Director of Schools Dr. Toni H. McGriff has been on the job for four years now and has brought system-wide improvements to the district.
“Under the guidance of our new superintendent, the schools have done exceptionally well – especially in the elementary schools with reading,” Mason says. “Test scores have also improved. In east Tennessee, we’re ranked in the top four school systems based on our test scores.”
