The View 38002 12-2019_December The View 38002 | Page 3

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December 2019
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Lakeland Prepatory High
By Amber Giffith
If ever existed a school that could go down in Memphis’ history as most anticipated, the City of Lakeland’s new Preparatory High School would certainly be in the running.
News of funding for the long-
awaited Lakeland School System
education project was officially
announced via two press releases on
September 26, 2019. The City of
Lakeland has shared notice of approval
from the United States Department of
Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development
which grants the city a $60,000,000
Community Facilities Loan to fund the
new Lakeland Preparatory High School
as well as refinance the existing 2015
Capital Outlay Note used to construct
the Lakeland Middle Preparatory
School. City manager, Shane A. Horn
stated, “I want to sincerely thank those
supporters that remained determined for
seven years to make it happen. I also
want to thank the School Board and
BOC (board of commissioners) for
helping Lakeland move forward without
a tax increase.”
Lakeland School System is currently
comprised of two schools: Lakeland
Elementary School, built in August of
2001 to serve Kindergarten through 4th-
grade students and Lakeland Middle
Preparatory School, completed in the
Fall of 2017 to serve 5th grade through
8th-grade students. This August, LSS
was honored to be named one of only
twenty Exemplary Districts in the state
of Tennessee. The school system’s 2019
Reward School status was ranked at #1
for 3rd through 5th grades and #2 for 6th
through 8th grades.
In a separate press release, Lakeland
School System shared that funds to
begin the process of designing the high
school and related athletic facilities have
been transferred to the Tennessee office
of the USDA and stated, “The project
will expand the footprint of the existing
Lakeland Middle Preparatory School to
serve students in grades 5-12 rather than
building a separate new school.” Dr. Ted
Horrell, Superintendent of the Lakeland
School System, said: “We look forward
to designing and creating a facility that
will make our community proud while
providing
new
academic
and
extracurricular opportunities for our
students.” The projected timeline
anticipates a full kindergarten through
12th-grade school system will be ready
to serve students by August of 2022.
FREE PICK UP & DELIVERY
LEAD Arlington Offers Inside Look Into Wright Medical
Mia
Patrikios
vividly
remembers
her visit in
middle school
to Arlington-
based
MicroPort
Orthopedics.
She
was
surprised then
how
a
company that large with a wide-reaching
international customer base existed in small
town Arlington. She recalls being wide-
eyed as she and the other students snaked
through the facility to see how medical
devices were designed, produced and
shipped.
So imagine her surprise when, now as a
sophomore, she visited Wright Medical
with Arlington High’s Collegiate Academy
and realized there were not one, but two
international medical device companies in
Arlington.
“I honestly had no idea this existed,” she
laughed. “This is just another thing I’ve
been stunned to learn about the town I live
in.”
Mia and 20 other Collegiate Academy
students, along with local business and
government leaders, toured Wright Medical
as part of the LEAD Arlington series,
which focuses on the latest happenings in
Arlington’s business, government and
school communities.
Wright Medical, which will soon be
absorbed by Stryker after a $4 billion
acquisition, was founded in 1950 and
relocated its headquarters to Arlington in
the 1970s. The company is globally known
for making medical devices focused for the
ankle, foot, shoulder and wrist.
Like Mia, Class of 2021’s Christian
Stevens was equally shocked as he made
his way through Wright and learned about
the multi-million-dollar operation. Those
on the tour had the chance to learn about
the entire process. From the delivery of raw
material and seeing machinists in action to
viewing the 3D printing equipment, Wright
displayed how its devices are made from
start to finish.
“I learned a lot. It’s pretty detailed and
intricate here, but I enjoyed going through
the business and learning how things are
made,” Christian said. “I’ve enjoyed
learning about being a leader and what
roles Wright is taking to create a better
community.”
For Mia, who as a sophomore is already
zoning in on a career in the medical field,
the tour was a chance to see the unique side
of how different industries can still be
connected to each other. “I think the 3D
printing was very cool, especially how
they’re able to create models of someone’s
bones from a CT scan,” she explained.
“Doctors are relying on Wright to help
patients, and this technology is making it
easier and more time effective for them to
do so.”
By Tyler Hill