Linda Payne

A series of informational sessions have been scheduled in the next three weeks to discuss the reality of building a new middle school in the Hibriten High School district.

Caldwell County Superintendent Dr. Steve Stone said three meetings have been arranged so that community members will have plenty of opportunities to get answers to their questions.

Stone said each meeting will include a brief presentation from the administrative staff about their goals of building a state-of-the-art middle school, and the remainder of the meetings will be an open forum for parents, students, faculty and community members to ask as many questions as they can.

"We really want these meetings to show the community where we are and where we want to go," Stone said. "Our goal is for the community to get the answers they need and to walk away knowing that everyone is on the same page.

"We have invited members of the Caldwell County Board of Commissioners to attend because we want them to understand they are vital partners in this process. We want to lay all of the information out on the table and see exactly what our community thinks."

The first meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 6 p.m. in the William Lenoir Middle School gymnasium. Stone said this meeting will be geared toward current and former students of the school. The second meeting will be Thursday, Nov. 19 at 6 p.m. in the Hibriten media center. This meeting will focus on students who attend the elementary schools that feed into WLMS. The final meeting, which will be Tuesday, Dec. 1 at 6 p.m. in the Hibriten media center, will be a time for students and parents in the county's K-8 schools to obtain the information they need.

"The public is invited to attend any of the meetings and to learn why we think this is the right time for this project," Stone said. "We will address questions related to the costs associated with new construction versus renovations, and do our best to pass along our excitement about the potential we think this new school has."

Stone said community members are invited to submit a list of questions. He said there are spaces to write questions on the bottom of the flier, which is available at the school system's Web site. Fliers also can be picked up at the Education Center, located across from the J.E. Broyhill Civic Center on U.S. 321.

For more information, contact staff members at the Education Center at 728-8407.