Chuckey-Doak Middle School staff and students move into new building

AFTON, Tenn. (WJHL) – Chuckey Doak Middle School has been constructing a new addition for the past year, but now it is complete and has become the new 8th-grade wing.

“It feels so good to see us growing because education’s growing,” said Candy Harkleroad, an 8th-grade English teacher at the middle school. “We also got a lot of new modern equipment and new desks.”

Chuckey-Doak Middle School building more classroom space

The main office has moved into the new building along with eight new classrooms that are larger. Both students and staff moved into the new building at the start of the new school year.

“I still had plenty of space in the other classroom, but the way that the setup here is that I can fit more students comfortably,” Harkleroad said.

Harkleroad told News Channel that with the new addition, students no longer have to go outside to the mobile classrooms for class, which makes it safer to have all the students inside one building.

“It has also been a great transition for the eighth graders, to have a building in a section of their own wing to then transition to the high school,” Hacklerroad said. “That’s part of the reason why we made it very similar to the way the high school is structured with the tile, the colors and things like that.”

Not only is the new building a benefit for the staff but also for the students.

“I think the students have pride and I’m seeing a very high level of pride,” Hackleroad said. “This is their wing and this is their own location.”

Chuckey-Doak Middle School will hold a ribbon cutting for the new building addition on Sept. 9 at 6 p.m.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather.