The auditorium at Cornerstone Elementary in Baxter, Tennessee, filled with parental applause following one mother's comment, "I'm so impressed with how you guys have come together and to see smiles on the teachers faces and children's faces in the midst of this--- it's seriously impressive."

The Baxter mother was speaking in response to administration and leadership response from Baxter Elementary as well as Cornerstone Middle School and Upperman High School following the flood damage and subsequent power failure for the elementary school last week. 

Gathering to review the plan of action Tuesday night, Dr. Kathleen Airhart praised the faculty and teaching staffs for the ways that they had worked together through the crisis to develop workable action plans that would best fit the needs of the community and children.

Airhart began the meeting by recounting the events of last Wednesday.    “We thought it was just a typical rainy day when the day began, but by 7:30 a.m. we realized we had a flood and were in contact with EMS who advised us – do not release children.   We didn't, believing that conditions would soon be more safe for travel.  By the time we made the decision to release children later in the day, we knew of 59 places where roads and bridges were out.   It’s the first time ever that I remember closing schools without provision of transportation.   We were prepared to keep them overnight if needed, but that didn’t turn out to be necessary."

Describing the electrical surprise in Baxter, Airhart first praised the road crews, "The road work done by the area road professionals was incredible….getting us back to school in a day was just a great feat.  But at Baxter Elementary, the teachers showed up without electricity when we returned to school on Friday.   On Saturday maintenance crews and Lakeland electric crews were still working, crawling out from under the building.   What we believe we’ve discovered, though it isn’t final, was that water backed up under the building into the wiring system under the building. "

"What we know," said Airhart, "is that they’ve been working through the weekend and the electricity is now on.  But my engineer wants to have a complete engineering inspection before we put children back in it.  In the meantime, we are finding placement for 600 children."

Describing the temporary plan that was put into place today and will be in effect until the building is cleared for students, Airhart told parents that Tuesday's closure of Baxter elementary had allowed those teachers to move their teaching materials and prepare to teach in temporary classroom environments.   

Upperman High School vacated one wing of their school to accomodate kindergarten, and first grade while pre-k, 2^nd, 3^rd and 4^th grades remained at the crowded Cornerstone Middle School. 

Mrs. Hoover, Baxter Elementary Principal, addressed parents' concerns about children's well-being, “We have breakfast in the auditorium until the big kids are in the classrooms and then move through the building…..the children have no contact with the bigger children and the scenario will be the same at Upperman." 

There is much evidence that the levels of cooperation are extremely high between the three schools and Airhart praised the Baxter education leaders for their willingness to work through overcrowded situations to continue to find solutions for the students.

Expressing appreciation for the assistance from the other schools and for her own school building, Principal Hoover said "This is my fourth year in Baxter" said Principal Hoover, "and it's a lot like a family." 

Hoover continued, “You kind of play the cards that are dealt and do what we can to get through.    No one wants a new school more than me, but boy what I wouldn’t do to be back in my old school right now.  You don’t know how thankful you are until you have nothing.  These babies have been real troupers and these teachers have not stopped…tests have been given, reading groups continuing.  We’ve tried really hard to keep the children safe and learning. “  

There are many things to be checked as the building is cleared for re-entry.   Airhart indicated that the electrical wiring, located under a crawl space, had in many places become a single forged cord of wires when inundated with flood waters.   “The phone system and alarm systems, intercom systems need to be fully operational, as well as the refrigerators and freezers….We need to make sure that all of the equipment is up and running."

Believing that the repairs will take days or weeks, rather than months, Airhart indicated that a good deal of damage had been done to the school's systems,  "We have to hit a certain number to be eligible for an insurance claim, but I believe that we’re hitting it with the situation here.”

In the meantime, Baxter's "littlest learners" are having reading group circles on auditorium stages and moving through halls intended for much bigger kids.  

Apparently the children think the situation is alright.   Said one parent, "My children think it's great fun.   They can't wait to get to school...and when they get there the teachers are all smiles and ready for them.   I'd need stress drugs, I'm sure -- I'm not sure how they're doing it." 

Airhart made her concluding comments saying, "We could be back in school as soon as this Friday--or it could be as long as two weeks.  We'll take as many additional days as necessary to make sure things are right."

She continued, "Several parents, grandparents and concerned citizens have been volunteering to help us get through this; we can always use extra sets of hands.  We will get through this because we have the greatest group of staff and teachers working together."

Putnam County School Board Member, Eric Brown, was present at the meeting. He declared, "I have a 7 year old in 2nd grade.  He's having a ball!.  What I have observed in this situation is incredible cooperation between three schools. And for the kids, it's sort of like an extended field trip.   I would like to encourage each of you to take time and say 'thank you' to the faculty and staff of these three schools."