Putnam Schools Delay Rolling Reader Program

The Putnam County School System delayed its Rolling Reader mobile library until the fall.

PreK-5 Curriculum Supervisor Jill Ramsey said scheduling conflicts and delays in funding pushed back the project until the next academic year.

“It’s just taken a little more time than what we anticipated,” Ramsey said. “We really wanted the bus to be on the road this summer and be part of the summer reading program at the different locations across the district.”

Ramsey said Monterey High School CTE carpentry students planned to renovate the bus in the spring. However, delays in the class housing project left no time for students to work in the bus.

Workers at the county bus garage hoped to pick up the project this summer, but plans were delayed due to an injured worker.

“Basically what we’re looking at now is our original plan of letting our CTE class in Monterey do the conversion in the fall when we get back in school,” Ramsey said.

However, the delay doesn’t mean the bus won’t show up until next summer. Ramsey said the bus could make appearances at area events as early as this fall once it’s renovated.

“We really want students who are in our school system to be part of that project and have ownership in that project,” Ramsey said. “We’re just going to be delayed a little bit.”

The purpose of the Rolling Reader is to provide additional reading opportunities to Putnam County students. PCSS approved a partnership in March with First National Bank of Tennessee to receive funding for renovating a school bus into a mobile library.