NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — The brand new James Lawson High School in Bellevue will have its official ribbon cutting Thursday ahead of students starting the new school year.
It was decided Hillwood High school would move to a new school back in 2017. Now the years of discussions, raising money, and construction will finally come to an end with a celebration.
The new school is named after Rev. James Lawson who was a key leader in Nashville's Civil Rights movement as an organizer of the lunch counter sit-ins and teacher of non-violent protests to students — including U.S. Representative John Lewis. He continues to preach for social justice today.
Today's ribbon cutting is at the school at 9 a.m. and people can hear from Director of Metro Schools, Dr. Adrienne Battle, as well as Mayor John Cooper, Dr. Stephen Sheaffer, who is the Principal of the school, and other city leaders.
The new 307 thousand-square-foot building will be home to 150 teachers and staff and can accommodate up to 16 hundred students. It cost about 124 million dollars to build and includes classroms, a cafeteria, a student commons, an auditorium, a large gym, a smaller practice gym and wrestling rooms, and art, music, and choir rooms.
The outdoor area includes fields for baseball, softball, football, soccer, practice fields and a track.
It is also environmentally sustainable, with solar panels on the roof and a partial green roof.
