Community celebrates the opening of three new schools for Williamson County

School and county leaders, parents, students and community members got their first look at Williamson County’s three newest schools at the ribbon cutting ceremonies on Sunday, July 24.  The series of celebrations began at Mill Creek Elementary School and the connected Mill Creek Middle School, followed by Mill Creek High School. Located on a large 100-acre campus on York Road, the three schools create a new academic hub for the community and will welcome their first students for the 2016-17 school year.

Mill Creek Elementary and Middle School is a new K-8 prototype developed for Williamson County Schools by Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood. The footprint marries the elementary and middle schools with a connecting spine between the two major classroom wings and one wing of auxiliary spaces. The auxiliary wing includes the cafeteria, two gymnasiums and an auditorium and can be accessed separately from the main academic building for use after hours.

The connecting spine at the center of the facility houses a media center, art labs and flexible classroom spaces used for teacher training, testing and collaborative learning. School officials also intend to utilize these shared spaces to allow K-8 students to work together on projects that may include technology, science, arts and mathematics, in addition to service projects.

Two grand staircases connect the two-story academic wings and the atrium space outside, which serves as the pre-function area for the auditorium and cafeteria. There are 68 classrooms and four special needs classrooms – half with toilets, along with art, speech, computer, resource, band, music, science and flex classrooms. Auxiliary spaces include middle and elementary gyms, separate cafeterias served by a shared kitchen, and separate media centers with a shared circulation desk.

Work is underway on Williamson County’s second school using this same K-8 prototype.