by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

At the March 23 Sewanee Community Council meeting, council members John Gilmer and Laura Willis raised red flags about danger to pedestrians from motorists driving at speeds far exceeding the speed limit. School of Theology representative Gilmer called attention to speeding on University Avenue and Tennessee Avenue. At-large representative Willis cited the straight away on Roark’s Cove Road between Alston Lane and Kirby Smith Road where no sidewalks and deep ditches increased the danger.

Prior to the meeting, Gilmer put a call out to his constituents asking about concerns. He applauded the efforts of the Sewanee Police to curtail speeding by patrolling. But he recently saw a car travelling an estimated 50 mph on Tennessee Avenue. “It’s like they expect they can speed without consequences [when there are no police],” Gilmer observed. Poor lighting at crosswalks worsened the danger to pedestrians, especially in the Woodlands residential area, Gilmer added. “Motorists can’t see people crossing.”

Council member Phil White suggested tag cameras as a solution. “Where they’re installed they work,” White said. The motion activated cameras photograph speeders license plates. Sewanee has two tag cameras, located in the vicinity of the Wellness Commons and the hospital, said Police Chief Jeremy Thomas, but the units were expensive. Council representative Evelyn Patton speculated the fines collected would offset the cost. “That wouldn’t help,” Thomas explained. “Sewanee doesn’t have a speeding ticket with a University fine. It would be a state citation.” Thomas encouraged residents to report excessive speeding. The police would respond in kind by increasing patrol.

Willis proposed a different solution. “I want speed humps between Alston Lane, where the Woodlands start, and Kirby Smith Road,” she said. The sharp curve just past Kirby Smith Road compounded Willis’ concerns. “Drivers coming up the mountain can’t see pedestrians on the road ahead,” Willis insisted.

Provost Scott Wilson offered an overview of past speed hump installation projects. A Student Security Grant financed the speed hump installation in 2024, with the focus of the grant emphasizing student safety determining the location of the speed humps. In 2025 the University matched a $6,000 Project Funding grant to the council to pay for two sets of speed humps, cost $5,000 per pair. Residents’ complaints about speeding guided the decision on the locations. Wilson speculated if the Project Funding Committee recommended and the council authorized additional money for speed humps, the University would match the amount.

Each year, the Council’s Project Funding Committee receives $10,000 from the University to allocate for projects that enhance the Sewanee community and improve the quality of life of residents. There was uncertainty about who is overseeing the Project Funding program at the present. June Weber who headed up the Project Funding Committee no longer serves on the council. Post meeting Willis reported plans called for resolving the issue of the committee’s leadership in the near future.

In other business, resident Andrew Cowan expressed concern about the need for rehabilitation at the dog park. A regular dog park visitor, Cowan recommended paving muddy high traffic areas, shade trees, and benches. He plans to submit a formal proposal. Robert Benton, Assistant Vice President for Facilities Management, said he would check on the amount of funds available in the dog park account. White cited an additional problem, invasive weeds. A resident suggested goats could help control vegetation.

The Sewanee Community Clean Up is scheduled for May 2, 9-11 a.m. Wilson said participants typically gathered at the Welcome Center and convened afterwards at Angel Park.

Council meeting dates for the 2026-2027 academic year are Aug. 24 (reserve), Sept. 21, Oct. 26, Nov. 23 (reserve), Jan. 25, Feb. 15 (reserve), March 22, April 26 (reserve), May 24, and June 28 (reserve). Reserve dates are optional, depending on business needing addressed.

On a chilly morning on March 12, the opening of a new commercial kitchen for Out of the Blue Granola marked another major milestone for Blue Monarch, a local nonprofit, which serves women in recovery and their children. After a ribbon cutting hosted by the Tullahoma Area Chamber of Commerce, the dedication began with the history, as told by Susan Binkley, who founded the business in 2008. Three granola employees shared their journeys, and the benefactors explained why they were inspired to provide the new kitchen. Lydia Fulks, a new baker for Out of the Blue, told the crowd, “I am so proud because this is the first time I have worked a job sober after fifteen years of addiction,” which illustrated the significance of the business and its purpose.

Out of the Blue Granola is owned by the nonprofit, which provides on-site employment and job training for the women in the program. Long-time Blue Monarch supporters, Scott and Gail Matthews from Texas, recognized the significant role this social enterprise played in the overall recovery of the women in the program, and they wanted to see the business expand to employ additional workers. Their gift doubles the capacity to produce and places the kitchen closer to the road for better truck access.

The high-quality granola not only provides valuable opportunities for the women of Blue Monarch, but it is also a powerful marketing tool. Inside every bag of granola is a photo of one of the bakers with her powerful story of recovery on the back. “We have found that customers collect these cards, pray over them, and even write notes of encouragement to the woman in the bag,” says Binkley.

“In fact, it was a single bag of granola that introduced us to the Matthews,” says Susan Binkley. “A friend of theirs purchased a bag at the Piggly Wiggly in Monteagle in 2015, brought it back to his community of friends in Texas, and Scott and Gail were among those folks. The generous couple has supported Blue Monarch ever since and they have now made a major investment in the families we will serve for many years to come.”

The three-flavor “granola with a purpose” is sold in multiple locations throughout the region, including specialty shops, natural food markets, hotel chains, and grocery stores. It may also be purchased online at <www.outofthebluegranola.com> or on Amazon.

Additional information about Blue Monarch may be found at <www.bluemonarch.org>.

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

Claiming the distinction of having more golf properties named among the top 100 than any other golf management company in the United States, KemperSports has assumed management of the Course at Sewanee, the University’s nine-hole golf course, as well as its restaurant, the Green’s View Grill.

The Course is known for its walkable layout and natural beauty. Golf Digest ranked the Course as one of “The 25 Greatest College Golf Courses in America” and Golf Magazine includes the Course among the “50 Best Nine-Hole Courses in the World.” Asked why the change in management practices, the University replied, “the operation is best managed by a professional golf and sports management company whose core competency is providing the best possible experience to students, community residents, and the many visitors we host.” All golf course employees were given the opportunity to transition over to be employed by KemperSports.

A golf course employee who spoke anonymously to the Messenger commented, “The change is unfortunate because we lose our University benefits. But, it may be a good business decision for them.” The employee hopes to get a non-golf-course University job.

“We are excited to welcome KemperSports to Sewanee,” said University Vice-Chancellor Rob Pearigen. “Their experience in course operations, food and beverage services, and long-term facility planning aligns with our vision for the Course at Sewanee. This partnership, combined with upcoming capital improvements, positions us well for continued success.”

KemperSports is undertaking an extensive bunker (sand trap) renovation to improve drainage, sand consistency, and overall playability, while enhancing aesthetics and long-term sustainability. “The Course at Sewanee is a very special golf course,” said KemperSports CEO Steve Skinner. “Gil Hanse [the designer] was able to create a beautiful, challenging and fun layout. We are excited to improve the golf experience for students, alumni, and guests while building upon its national reputation to draw players from throughout the country.”

Join us on Saturday, April 4 as we celebrate 20 years of the Moutain Goat Trail Alliance at the Mountain Goat Trail Race, sponsored by Mountain Outfitters. There’s a 2-mile walk, 5-mile run, and half-marathon, all on the trail, followed by food, fun, and the famous gear raffle!

The half-marathon begins in Mountain Outfitters in Monteagle at 8 a.m., and will run on the Mountain Goat Trail to Sewanee, with a section on smooth gravel railbed, before returning to the finish at Mountain Outfitters. The two-mile walk begins at 10:15 a.m. at La Bella Pearl’s Restaurant in Sewanee, and the five-mile run begins at 9:30 a.m., in downtown Sewanee, both finishing at Mountain Outfitters.

Packet pickup is from noon to 5 p.m., Friday, April 3, at Tower Community Bank in Monteagle.

For more information and to register, go to <https://www.mountaingoattrail.org>.

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

In a discussion at the March 17 meeting about sewer service to the University apartments scheduled for occupancy fall semester 2027, Sewanee Utility District manager Ben Beavers alerted the board of commissioners to sewer capacity concerns. Although the University apartment project is not in jeopardy, future large-scale development on the University side of Highway 41 would require increasing the size of the sewer line under the highway, a major undertaking with multiple issues.

The University is willing to pay for increasing the size of the sewer line passing the apartments to 12 inches, Beavers said. All the sewage from Georgia Avenue and St. Andrew’s-Sewanee School passes through that line. But increasing the size of the section of line passing the apartments will not address the capacity worries. The line joins the line passing under the highway which also carries sewage from much of the rest of campus. Beavers explained regulations stipulate design capacity is “half pipe”; at 0.8 capacity, the utility must pursue remedial solutions. “The sewer line under the highway is between those two [benchmarks], toward the high end,” Beavers said. “The problem already exists, and the apartments are making it worse.” SUD’s engineer advised against additional demand on the system beyond 10 houses over the next five years.

“That would restrict the University from adding additional apartment units,” said SUD President Charlie Smith.

“I made that perfectly clear,” Beavers said. “But we can’t compel them to [increase the line size] past the property line.”

Beavers cited an additional concern. Replacing the sewer line under the highway would entail significant disruption of the road, making Tennessee Department of Transportation approval necessary. “The manhole in the center of the highway is 14 feet deep,” Beavers said.

“This should have been dealt with before when the highway was narrowed [in 2021],” Smith insisted. SUD suggested increasing the line size at the time, but the advice was ignored.

In terms of small-scale remedies, SUD is undertaking extensive work to remediate inflow and infiltration (I&I) of rain water into the sewer lines. “The I&I work will help,” Beavers said.

To that end, the commission voted to dedicate surplus funds from the lead and copper survey to I&I rehabilitation. SUD funded the federally required lead and copper survey with American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. I&I remediation is also an ARPA project. The grand administrators approved rededicating the use of the surplus funds.

In other business the board approved a contract authorizing continuation of the Wetlands Project until August 2028. The trial constructed wetlands, a research project undertaken jointly by the University of the South and the University of Georgia in 2015, studies wetlands’ effectiveness in cleaning wastewater.

The initial contract extension proposed by the University gave the University sole authority in selecting legal counsel in the event of an indemnity claim, regardless of who was named in the claim. SUD’s insurer objected. Paraphrasing the approved revision, Beavers said, “If the University is the sole claimant in a lawsuit, they get to control who their lawyer is. If both of us are named, we have to agree on who the counsel is.” Regardless, the University bears all costs.

Smith questioned the provision allowing “the University and its agents to access the property at all times.” Beavers said the previous contract allowed the same assess. “We’ve never had an issue. They’re good about telling us when they want to bring a class.” SUD accommodates the requests by leaving the gate open.

The board elected Donnie McBee to serve as vice president for the coming year.

David Haskell will give a reading from his new book, “How Flowers Made Our World,” followed by a book signing. The event is at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 25, in Convocation Hall. The book celebrates the creativity of flowering plants. Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer-winning author and journalist, called the book “mind-blowing.”

Haskell is a Professor Emeritus at the University of the South, and a two-time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. The reading is sponsored by the Departments of Environmental Arts and Humanities, English and Creative Writing, Biology, and the Dakin Fund.

Wright Thompson, author of the acclaimed new work about the 1955 murder of Emmett Till, will read from his book during a visit to the Sewanee area on March 23 –24.

In “The Barn: The Secret History of a Murder” in Mississippi (Penguin Books), Thompson grounds his understanding of the lynching of Till, a 14-year-old Black boy from Chicago, in the historic soil of the Mississippi Delta, zeroing in on the barn where the torture and murder took place and that still stands today.

The Washington Post called The Barn “extraordinary ... an intimate history of the tragedy, but also a deep meditation on Mississippi and America.” Time magazine selected it as one of the 100 “Must Read” books of the year, “a sensitive, deeply reported book that will make you reconsider everything you thought you knew about Till’s lynching and its place in American history.” The writer Kiese Laymon called “The Barn” “the most brutal, layered and absolutely beautiful book about Mississippi, and really how the world conspired with the best and worst parts of Mississippi, I will ever read … Reporting and reckoning can get no better, or more important, than this.”

Wright will make two public appearances to discuss his work during his visit. At 6 p.m., Monday, March 23, he will be the featured speaker at “Coffee and Conversations,” sponsored by the Friends of the Franklin County Public Library, 105 S. Porter Street, in Winchester.

On Tuesday, March 24, at 7 p.m., he will read and discuss “The Barn” in Convocation Hall on the campus of the University of the South.

Thompson’s appearance in Sewanee is sponsored by the University’s Roberson Project on Slavery, Race, and Reconciliation, in partnership with the Sewanee School of Letters and The Sewanee Review.

In connection with Thompson’s visit, the Roberson Project is offering a complementary copy to anyone in the greater Sewanee area who would like one.

To get your copy, please write to us at <robersonproject@sewanee.edu>. Book clubs are especially welcome to request multiple copies. But hurry because our supply is limited.

Thompson’s appearance is made possible by an extraordinary gift from friends of the Roberson Project and the Sewanee School of Letters.

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

Behind the scenes at the Sewanee production of the award-winning play “King James” is a triad of conversations: a play about a conversation between two men; art as a conversation with the audience; and a conversation between Sewanee’s Truth, Community Healing, and Transformation Center and the Perspectives in Performance initiative. It all began when Woody Register, director of the Roberson Project and then director of the TCHT, suggested to Chris McCreary, “Find a play!”

McCreary, on the staff of both TCHT and the Roberson Project for Race and Reconciliation, calls his work there, “my day job.” “I’m a theater kid by trade,” McCreary confessed. He has a master’s in directing from Portland College. When he arrived in Sewanee in 2023, he quickly found a home in Sewanee’s Theater Department as a guest artist, doing sound design, and occasional directing. McCreary and Register began discussing how to use art to accomplish TCHT’s mission, bringing people with apparent difference together to talk about issues that apply to all of them.

Coincidentally, professor Sarah Lacy Hamilton, theater, and professor Britt Threatt, English, were engaged in launching the Perspective in Performance project, with a like-minded goal: bringing professional actors to campus and using theater as a tool to foster communal belonging and dialogue across differences. In the first production, last fall’s The Niceties, a black student and her white professor engage in a brave conversation about the student’s paper on slavery.

Rising to Register’s challenge to “find a play,” McCreary zeroed in on “King James.” He pitched the play to the Perspective in Performance (PIP) team, and PIP welcomed “King James” with open arms. “It was a natural fit,” McCreary said.

In 2024, “King James” was nominated as an Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play and won five Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle awards. “King James” opens with a struggling black writer, Shawn, meeting the white bartender, Matt, at Matt’s bar to buy 2003-2004 season tickets for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The two men have only one thing in common, hero worship of the Cavaliers’ star player, LeBron James. Staged as four quarters rather than scenes, the seasons of James’ career are the topics that bind the men’s evolving relationship with each other and themselves.

“Sports are the framework where they communicate,” observed McCreary who directs the play. “We watch them become better at navigating and expressing their emotions, and we watch them struggle to do that and fail to do that. The play mirrors what it’s like to have meaningful a friend in your life, growing independently and growing together at the same time.”

Said critic Frank Scheck in the New York Stage Review commenting on playwright Rajiv Joseph’s gift for nuance, he “beautifully captures the vagaries of friendship, including the power imbalance dependencies that can affect them and the careless misunderstandings that can rupture them.”

“Sports is often seen as the only appropriate outlet for men to express emotions,” McCreary pointed out. “King James” both explodes and embraces that myth. The Sewanee production invites the audience to join the conversation. Between “the quarters,” Equity, Equal Opportunity director and education coordinator Dr. Syliva Gray engages the audience in the discussion.

“It’s not just about the play doing the work,” McCreary stressed. “In these times when things are getting bleaker and bleaker, and we’re getting pushed further into the corners, ‘King James’ reaches a hand out to staying connected and spurs a sense of belonging. And hopefully,” McCreary added, “it inspires people to hold the people in their lives a little bit closer.”

“King James” will be performed at 7:30 p.m., Friday, March 20 through Saturday, March 21, at the Tennessee Williams Center: Studio Theatre. There is no charge for admission.

Jessie Ball duPont Library will celebrate the International Edible Books Festival with a contest scheduled for Monday, March 30, in the main lobby of the duPont Library. The entries for the contest will be accepted from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Public Viewing and People’s Choice Award Voting will be from 1–3:30 p.m. Winners will be announced at 4 p.m., with a reception to follow. This event is sponsored by The Friends of the Library, Sewanee Dining, and Library and Information Technology Services. Find out all the details about the event and register your entry at <https://library.sewanee.edu/ed...;. Entries are open to community members, as well as Sewanee students, staff, and faculty! Each entry should be edible — cakes, vegetables, fruits, bread, etc. — and represent a book or something about a book. Past entries have included “Grapes of Wrath,” “A Farewell to Arms,” and “The Hungry Caterpillar,” among other literary greats. We have six categories that will have prizes awarded: Punniest, Literary Theme, Showstopper, People’s Choice (popular vote), Best Team Entry, and Best Entry by a Child (under 12).

The City of Cowan has received a $25,000 Brownfield Redevelopment Action Grant from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. The grant will be used to host public meetings and to create plans for improving Cowan’s downtown, including possible routes for the Mountain Goat Trail.

“With this grant, Cowan will have public meetings to learn what our citizens want to see happen in the downtown. We’ll have expert help coming up with a plan for the town’s future, including how the Mountain Goat Trail will come into town,” said Cowan mayor Richard Hunt.

The town will select a consulting firm to carry out the grant. Public meetings are scheduled to take place this spring.

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

“I’ve reiterated over and over to our designer, we want to remain a wilderness park. We don’t want to be like some of those other parks where you can reach out and touch your neighbor,” insisted Savage Gulf State Park Manager Aaron Reid responding to a question about distance between camp sites at a car camping area proposed for the $105 million capital project changes coming to Savage Gulf. At a March 5 public hearing, Reid talked about a grant to fund a connector trail from the Stone Door area to the proposed new development with 55-acre Laurel Creek Lake as the center attraction. Designated as a state Natural Area in 1973, the legendary Stone Door staircase between massive boulders leads into the heart of Savage Gulf, the largest state park in Tennessee encompassing nearly 20,000 acres.

Currently, four trailheads serve Savage Gulf. The first phase of the capital project will create a fifth trailhead just off Hwy. 56 near the Beersheba Springs Post Office. “We’re not allowed to build roads in the park,” Reid stressed. Annually, 160,000 visitors experience the park’s wild beauty, hiking or mountain biking on the 56 miles of trails. A gravel connector trail, just under a mile long, will join the Stone Door visitor center to the three-miles gravel trail that will circle Laurel Creek Lake.

Among the goals of the State Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan is to “balance use with resource protection,” Reid observed. “The Great Stone Door is the park’s most iconic attraction. Visitors will be able to get there [from the lake] without driving.” Reid proposed the connector trail as part of the capital project, but it was not included in the budget. A federal Recreational Trails Program (RTP) grant will fund the connector trail, estimated cost $180,000. The grant also includes funding to hire a landscape architect to engineer rehabilitation of the Stone Door trail built in the late 1980s. Reid anticipates funding the rehabilitation construction with another grant or money from the state.

The RTP grant rules will allow money spent on the capital project to count as the 20 percent matching funds requirement of the grant. Phase 2 of the capital project includes a visitor center with 100 parking spaces, 60 RV camping sites, 16 car camping sites, 16 yurt sites, three pavilions, a boat dock and boat rental.

Reid predicts the capital project’s Phase 1, constructing the road from Hwy. 56 to the lake area, will begin this summer, with phase 2 beginning next summer. For the connector trail project, full authorization and environmental review will likely take until early 2027. The timeline projects two years for implementation, but Reid said, “I don’t think it will take that long.”

Asked about new hiking trails, Reid doesn’t anticipate any in the Stone Door staircase area but pointed to possibilities on the south side of the park, perhaps a mountain bike trail, a trail to a waterfall, and a backpacking loop trail past Hobbs Cabin.

The Stone Door connector trail will pass one of the park’s nine backcountry campgrounds. “I foresee both day hikers and overnight campers using this trail. It will make the area more appealing and more user friendly to our visitors by allowing better access to our most popular attraction, which in this part of the park is the Great Stone Door.”

The park service welcomes public comments on the connector trail project through March 20. Mail comments to P.O. Box 561 Beersheba Springs, TN 37305 or submit comments to Reid via email at <aaron.reid@tn.gov>.

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

“Better safe than sorry,” said Safety Director Chris Hawkersmith commenting on the 23 threats investigated last quarter at the March 9 Franklin County School Board meeting. But when asked if 23 threats was extreme, Hawkersmith was quick to point out, “That’s pretty average. And most threats don’t amount to much.” Hawkersmith’s Threat Assessment Report was featured in the Spotlight segment of the meeting. In regular business, the board approved several changes diverging from past practices: kindergarten starting age, the 2027-2028 school year calendar; and the director of schools contract.

Of the 23 threats reported from Oct. 31 to the present, 22 were students threatening students and one was a student threatening a teacher. Hawkersmith said each school had a threat assessment team that in the event of a threat conducted an inquiry, filled out extensive paperwork, and contacted the parents. Possible consequences, when deemed appropriate, range from suspension, to alternative school, to checking in with a counselor, to backpack checks. Hawkersmith acknowledged some of the threats were ridiculous. A first grader threatened to kill his teacher who refused to let him go outside after lunch, explaining it was not time for recess. “You wouldn’t believe some of these things,” Hawkersmith said, “but you’ve got to be careful.” He also emphasized the importance of not exaggerating the significance of the data. “Considering there are 11 schools, 23 threats is not a lot. It averages out to just two per school.”

Taking up policy, the board approved a change offering a possible route for kindergarten age children turning five after Aug. 15 to begin school that fall. Previously, the Compulsory Attendance Ages policy required a child to turn age five by Aug. 15 to be enrolled. The change applies to children who turn five between Aug. 16 and Sept. 30 who in some case may be allowed to start school. A special request must be made by the child’s parent or guardian, and the director of schools must conduct an “evaluation and examination” to determine if the child is sufficiently mature “emotionally and academically.” The policy change weighs a child’s readiness to start school against the high demands of testing in today’s educational environment.

The 2027-2028 school year calendar approved by the board provides for a smoother transition back into the school year. Offered a choice in school calendars for 2027-2028, 64 percent of the certified staff voted for a calendar in which the first day of school, an abbreviated day, was followed by a full week of classes. The alternative calendar proposed was typical of other school year calendars for beginning the school year by staggering abbreviated days and no school days, with an abbreviated first day followed by a no-school day or an abbreviated first day followed by a weekend. Guided by the certified staff vote, the board chose the calendar beginning with an abbreviated day followed by a full week of classes. The calendar can be viewed at: <fcstn.community.highbond.com/document/53d92b9c-6ca0-4620-a310-22e93b91078d/>.

The board also approved the contract for rising director of schools Roger Alsup. The contract is for four years, rather than three as was previously the case. The longer term gives Alsup more time to demonstrate his effectiveness and acknowledges a director’s first year is a learning process, so not a good measure of performance. If the board decides to extend or renew the contract, the board must give notice of their intention by January 1 of Alsup’s last year by the contract provisions. The previous April renewal deadline left the board very little time to find a replacement by July, if nonrenewal was the decision.

Board member Sarah Marehevsky alerted the board to new proposed legislation that would require schools to verify children’s immigration status and report it to the state, but would not authorize the schools to refuse to enroll them, as is the case with another bill being considered. Commenting on the new bill, touted by some as less egregious, board member Sarah Marhevsky said, “Families aren’t going to feel safe if they think their kids are being tracked. Not to mention, it’s not just students who don’t have legal status in the country who can’t provide documentation. It could be a foster kid who doesn’t have a copy of their birth certificate. Everyone should feel safe at school.”

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

Legislation moving through the committee process in the Tennessee General Assembly (HB 1711/SB 2108) proposes “law enforcement agencies and local governmental entities” report “persons not lawfully present in the United States,” as well as “the annual cost incurred by this state for public schools … to provide benefits and services to persons not lawfully present in the United States.” Companion bills (HB 793/SB 836) propose public schools “refuse to enroll students who are unlawfully present in the United States.” In a March 2 virtual press conference, the Immigration Research Institute (IRI) drove home what these bills would mean translated into action: public schools would be required to verify students’ status by asking students to provide birth certificates or other documentation to prove their citizenship and/or immigration status. Said David Dyssegaard Kallick, Director of the IRI, “I don’t want to make this seem like its mostly a cost question, but for anyone who thinks that [these bills] would be without significant expense to the [public school] districts, that’s just not the case.”

To evaluate the citizenship or immigration status of all 963,000 students in the Tennessee school system would entail hiring, training and equipping 934 school personnel, estimated cost $55 million. Verifying only 5-year-olds coming to school for the first time or new enrollees would cost roughly $4 million, and this would not be a one-time expense. The implementation costs would recur every school year.

Franklin County School Board representative Sarah Marhevsky mined the depth of the consequences at the base level: the impact on children. “Presenting a birth certificate might not be a big deal for most people,” Marhevsky said, “but for students who are homeless or students in foster care or students adopted from international locations that might be an impossible task.”

“We don’t choose our parents,” Marhevsky observed. “Children are not responsible for the choices of their parents. How could any educator look at a child and say, ‘No, you can’t go to school.’ I’ve taught children of all different backgrounds at three different schools. Those are things I would never say. I don’t know any teacher who would.”

Commenting on the current climate of fear in the public schools, Jack Masterson, a freshman in the Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools, said, “All of my friends belong at school. Not some of them, all of them, no matter their immigration status. I’ve seen teammates miss games, practices, and even tournaments. My friends are living in fear.”

Footnoting the financial factor in the birth certificate equation, Marhevsky stressed, “In Tennessee we have no state income tax. We do, however, have a high sales tax rate. The families of every school age child in Tennessee pay taxes that support our schools.” Decrying the proposed legislation as contrary to state policy and creed, she cited the Tennessee Department of Education website, “‘We are committed to the belief children from all backgrounds can succeed when given the opportunity they deserve. Tennessee K through 12 education operates with a common goal: to provide the best for all students.’” Marhevsky insisted, “When we say all, we must mean all.”

For more information go to <https://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/BillInfo/Default?BillNumber=HB1711>. For more information go to <https://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/BillInfo/Default?BillNumber=HB0793>.

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

“Kids took breaks during the school year. During fall break they would pick cotton. They didn’t really get a break, because they kept working so hard. Thankfully we don’t have to do that now,” observed Sewanee Elementary School fifth-grader Kaisen Dietz teaching history to Sewanee Civic Association members and guests at the March 2 dinner meeting. Kaisen was among the troupe of student researchers who investigated SES’s history in conjunction with SES librarian Kathryn Bruce’s turning the school’s upcoming birthday into a learning game. With the opening of classes, this fall SES turns 100.

“The Sewanee Civic Association is the reason the little school across the street even exists,” Bruce said. “Sewanee Elementary School was built by the community for the community.” Students have spent the past two years researching the school’s history. “We want to help our students connect the past to the future. This year’s theme has been building the future. These are the students that are going to eventually be in your chairs making the decisions that benefit the community.”

Principal Allison Dietz introduced the student presenters: Suzy Camp, grade five; Bella Barnes, grade four; Kaisen Dietz, grade five; Mia Casey, grade four; and Charlotte Fischer, grade four. In addition to conducting oral history interviews, after being tutored by mentors from the Roberson Project on Race and Reconciliation, the students studied photos and University archives documents.

“We saw a letter from 1877 that showed the people of the community wanted to build a school even before the Sewanee Civic Association,” said Suzy Camp. “It cost only one dollar per year to rent the lot. This first school is the Billy Goat Hill School.”

Mia Casey cited notes from the 1922 Sewanee Civitan Club meeting, the forerunners of the SCA. “They decided they wanted to build a public school. So the town started raising money. They set a goal of $10,000. The University gave money. The French class at the University held a play that brought in $43. A fancy ball raised $74. Community members donating money raised $3,200.”

Kaisen Dietz put the 1922 finances into perspective, pointing out, “$10,000 equals $192,000 now. And that is what the town raised to get our school going.”

Suzy Camp illustrated her remarks about the school’s initial design counting the classrooms shown on the original blueprints. “One, two, three, four. These four classrooms still exist and are still in use. The auditorium, back there,” Suzy pointed to the diagram, “is now the principal’s office and the auditorium. The classrooms had mixed grades, with only four rooms and eight grades. Now we have classrooms for every grade.”

Bruce acknowledged “piecing together” information about the principals and staff by relying on “voices from the community.” Ralph Black served as the first principal, followed by Theron Myers. “We’re trying to figure out when he stopped being principal. Unfortunately, the Franklin County records only go back to 1980.”

“The school must have had a successful first year,” Bruce speculated, displaying the commencement program from 1927. The event featured a “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” operetta. “Clearly from the get go the arts were important at SES,” Bruce insisted.

She emphasized the community’s commitment to the school and how during construction, people donated labor, working after their day jobs. A citizen’s letter read, “This school stands as an enduring witness to the ability of this community to do big things when everybody lends a helping hand.”

“That’s what we’re trying to portray to our students,” Bruce stressed. She also highlighted the important connection with St. Mark & St. Paul Parish Church which helped with feeding students and providing overflow classroom space when needed.

That connection continues to this day. Bella Barnes told the SCA about a recent project with the church-sponsored Community Action Committee. “Our school collected cereal boxes for the CAC. We had a competition between classes. We set a goal for 250 boxes. We collected 536 boxes, more than double our goal.”

SES hopes to have a float celebrating the 100th anniversary in the July 4th parade. The school will host a birthday celebration on May 8 with an open house. Fourth grader Charlotte Fischer offered a preview of the plans. “The students will represent the different decades of our school and the ways the school has expanded. We will be dressed in decade attire and sharing information about that decade. Also, a mom of a kindergartener has made wooden ornaments depicting the school that will be available, and the Civic Association will have a booth to receive the donations.”

Other SES birthday-history projects Bruce initiated include a Facebook page and July 4 booth last year, to name just a few. She closed with a shout out to the SCA for their ongoing support and presented President Kiki Beavers with a giant thank you card signed by the entire SES student body, faculty, and staff. The SES-SCA partnership and SES’s projects and activities throughout the past two years shine as witness to how to build the future from the past, a future led by community minded citizens. With Bruce’s commitment and compassion as the driving force, SES is making that goal a reality.

During the business portion of the meeting, Beavers announced the slate of officers for 2026-2027: Ben Trahan, president; Sarah Edmonds, secretary; Ben Austin, treasurer; Kate Reed and Laura Sonderman, members-at-large.

The membership will vote on the slate and 2025-2026 budget at the May 4 annual membership meeting and awards ceremony. Community Service Award nominations can be made through March 13 by email at <sewaneecommunitychest@gmail.com> or by postal mail at SCA, P.O. Box 99, Sewanee, TN 37375.

The Community Chest fund drive is just $6,800 from reaching its $118,500 goal. Mail donations to SCC, P.O. Box 99, Sewanee, TN 37375 or donate online at <https://sewaneecivic.org;. This year’s budget earmarks $25,000 for the Sewanee Elementary School SPO.

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

After lengthy discussion at the March 3 meeting, the Monteagle Planning Commission voted to approve an ordinance amendment defining the circumstances when the building inspector can approve modifications to a site plan. The commission also grappled with new regulations for the downtown business district, but tabled approval until following a workshop.

In its initial form, the amendment addressing the building inspector’s authority said post approval by the planning commission, the inspector could approve “minor modifications” to a site plan such as those addressing parking and landscaping, but not modifications to the building. In the case of major modifications, the amended site plan must be approved by the planning commission.

“My only concern is that many minor modifications could add up to a big change,” said Commission Katie Trahan. She suggested after a certain number of minor changes planning commission review be required.

“It depends on how strict you want to make it,” said town planner Jonathan Rush.

Commissioner Alec Mosley observed, “It would be hard to give a number” to what constituted a substantial change.

“If you give the building inspector responsibility, you need to give him authority,” insisted Commission President Richard Black.

The commission approved the amendment authorizing the building inspector to approve minor changes with the added language, “A minor change may not be approved if when combined with other changes, it substantially alters the overall nature of the site plan approved.”

The ordinance amendment also stipulated applicants for site plan approval must complete a checklist verifying the site plan addressed all ordinance requirements. Rush explained, “The check list means the site plan shows what it is supposed to show, but it does not mean the staff, such as the town engineer, have given approval.” The amendment also stipulates the staff, including the engineer, building inspector, and others, complete a check list with review comments to be given to the applicant.

“This addresses a complaint the town did not do a good job of telling applicants what was expected,” Black said. The commission considered the amendment in 2023, but never moved forward with adoption. The amendment will go to the town council for final approval.

The proposed new zoning ordinance regulations for the downtown business district resulted from the Imagine Monteagle initiative receiving a grant to enlist a consultant to use zoning as a tool to spur downtown development.

Rather than being referred to as the C-1 “commercial corridor,” the area would be called the “downtown zoning district,” essentially encompassing the property between Highway 41 South and Wren’s Nest Road. The rule changes distinguish between “primary Main Street” and “other,” with “primary” referring to property from the elementary school to CVS and “other” referring to property from High Point Restaurant to the school.

“In general, these regulations make it easier to build than what we have,” said Monteagle Alderman Nate Wilson. “They do away with or reduce minimum lot sizes and parking requirements. It’s about changing priorities to encourage the sort of small-scale development that builds downtowns.”

The new rules limit the maximum building footprint to 8,000 square feet and add two uses to the current allowed list: makerspace (collaborative workspace for crafts and learning) and brew pubs with small capacity brewing facilities. Industrial breweries would not be allowed. The “primary” section allows “mixed use residential” (i.e. a residence and business in the same building), but no other residential. The only architectural regulations in the “primary” section limit building height and prescribe the percentage of windows on street facing exteriors.

Black requested the new regulations include “a table of uses.” Alderman Grant Fletcher proposed some regulation of building material type. “What if we say, no prefab metal buildings. I’m just trying to get rid of the ugliest of the ugly.”

Rush expressed concern regulating materials required the ordinance to include “design review.”

“Design review killed development in Sewanee,” Wilson said.

The commission will take up the materials and property use questions at a workshop in the near future.

Commissioner Dan Sargent brought to the commission’s attention property with an approved site plan had a new owner/developer. Located on the corner of Highway 41 and Ingman Road, the site plan called for ten patio homes. Sargent said the developer only intended to build six homes, none on lots exiting on Highway 41. Rush said he spoke with the developer who speculated patio homes might not be the best use of the property fronting Highway 41. He could build on the other lots according to the approved site plan, Rush confirmed. Changes to the lots fronting Highway 41 would require approval of an amended site plan.