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Bobby Ray marks end of school with water activities
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Dalton Perez
Published: May 24, 2023, 7:42 AM

Bobby Ray Elementary has a tradition of celebrating the end of the school year by beating the heat. Water Day is a big part of the way the school rewards its  students for their hard work and dedication throughout the year. Though the school does hold other reward days for the students, Water Day reigns as the most anticipated and memorable for all those who attend. 

Candy Seals, instructional coach at Bobby Ray, shared her thoughts on what Water Day is and what makes up the best parts of the event. “We have PBIS programs at school, and that stands for positive behavior in school, and they earn Star Bucks, because we are the Bobby Ray Stars,” stated Seals. Rewards days are held each quarter for the students where they can use their Star Bucks to purchase participation in the rewards. 

Each event that was held during Water Day cost the students a certain amount of Star Bucks, and the goal for the students are to collect enough to participate in everything. This Water Day had water slides, a station for students to spray their teachers, water-based duck, duck goose, snow cones and sprinklers. 

Perhaps the most memorable and traditional event during Water Day, however, is when the firetruck shows up to shower the students and teachers with water. “The firetruck is for everyone. It’s our traditional end of the year celebration,” said Seals. 

The firetruck seems to be everyone’s favorite part of Water Day. Seals stated that she has been with Bobby Ray since its opening in 1995 and the firetruck has been a staple since the school’s origins. “Even the seniors that came to do the Senior Walk yesterday – we asked them what their best memory of school was, and we had about 40 – I would say at least 10 of them said the firetruck day. So, it created a great memory of Bobby Ray.” 

Seals stated that despite ranking which event is the favorite, the whole day is fun. Students get to see their teachers and instructors let loose with them and recognize them as the normal people that they actually are. 

“At this point in the year you can almost be more like their friend. They see you as a real person instead of the person who just gives them information every day.” 
Local farm partnership brings fresh beef to Warren County Schools
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Published: Apr 2, 2025, 11:31 PM

Warren County Schools has beefed up lunch menus this school year through a new community partnership. Thanks to a collaboration between the district’s School Nutrition Department and Barton Creek Farms, students at Warren County High School, Warren County Middle School, West Elementary, Eastside Elementary, and Dibrell Elementary are enjoying locally sourced, farm-fresh beef in their lunches as part of a pilot program.

The initiative, spearheaded by Terri Mullican, Director of School Nutrition, has already shown great promise in its first few months. The partnership with Barton Creek Farms, located in Rock Island, Tennessee, ensures that the beef served is not only local to Warren County but of the highest quality. Barton Creek Farms specializes in farm-to-fork beef, with grass-fed and grain-finished cattle. Each calf is born and raised in Rock Island and goes through USDA-inspected processing, ensuring it meets the strictest safety and quality standards.

“When the opportunity arose to provide fresh, local beef, we knew it was a no-brainer,” Mullican said. “The fact that it’s a product from right here in our community makes it even more special. We can’t wait to implement it district-wide.”

Barton Creek Farms delivers fresh ground beef to the district monthly, and the nutrition

department incorporates it into homemade recipes such as lasagna, meatloaf, chili, and tacos.

As of now, the beef is being served at five schools, but the ultimate goal is to expand the program to all ten lunch-serving schools in the district.

The pilot program originated from a conversation between Mary Roller of Barton Creek Farms and Mullican. Roller, recognizing the farm’s potential to support local schools, reached out to gauge the district’s interest in serving local beef to students. Around the same time, a Warren County school board member contacted Mullican to share information about a similar partnership in neighboring Dekalb County, which helped push the initiative forward.

The timing worked in the district’s favor, as the nutrition department was able to fund the purchase of the beef using existing resources, eliminating the need for additional funding. Now that the pilot program is enjoying a successful run, the department has budgeted to extend the partnership district-wide for the 2025-26 school year.

Dr. Grant Swallows, Director of Schools, praised the program’s economic approach to student nutrition.

“This pilot is a perfect example of how we can use local resources to continue providing nutritious, healthy meals for our students,” he said. “We are grateful for partnerships like this one that benefit both our students and our local community. We always strive to support our local businesses when we can because our community is so good to us.”

In addition to working with Warren County Schools, Barton Creek Farms also partners with local restaurants to offer farm-fresh beef on their menus. The farm’s offerings include ground beef, steaks, roasts, and custom cuts by the quarter, half, or whole cow, meeting diverse consumer needs.

As the program continues to grow, the district hopes to expand its focus on farm-to-school meals, benefiting students’ health and connecting them to the agricultural roots of the community