Benton School District

🎉 January is School Board Appreciation Month! 🎉 We are incredibly grateful for our School Board members and their unwavering dedication to our students, staff, and community. They give their time freely—attending meetings (sometimes several a month!), supporting school events, and making decisions that shape the future of our district. Please join us in thanking our board members for their service: ⭐ Tadd Farmer – President ⭐ Karen Hammer – Vice President ⭐ Boyd Goodner – Secretary ⭐ Justin Dorsey – Zone 1 ⭐ Paul Childress – At Large ⭐ Luke Fulcher – Zone 3 ⭐ Randy Wright – At Large Your leadership and commitment make a difference every day. Thank you for all you do! ❤️ #SchoolBoardAppreciation #ThankYou

🚍 Alternate Bus Routes for the Remainder of the Week 🚍 Bus #64 (MVE): Morning Pick-Up: Ten Mile & Pleasant Run (6:05-6:20 AM) Afternoon Drop-Off: Ten Mile & Pleasant Run (4:00 PM) 📍 Note: The bus will not travel up Pleasant Run this week. Bus #78 (MVE): Morning Pick-Up: Narrows & Boondock (6:00 AM) Afternoon Drop-Off: Narrows & Boondock (3:45 PM) 📍 Note: The bus will not travel up Boondock this week. Thank you for your understanding as we adjust these routes. Please plan accordingly! 🚌 These alternate routes will run through January 17, 2025 unless otherwise stated.

Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Reminder Benton Public Schools will be closed on Monday, January 20, 2025, in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Classes will resume on Tuesday, January 21, 2025. Enjoy the holiday!

📢 Important Announcement: Alternate Bus Routes for Delayed Start Due to the delayed start to school tomorrow at 10:00 a.m., some buses will have alternate pick-up locations and times. Please carefully review the details below for your student’s bus route. Only the listed buses will have changes; all other buses will run their regular morning routes two hours later than usual. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please contact your school office. Afternoon routes are expected to run on their normal schedules, and any changes will be communicated via text and social media. Thank you for your cooperation! 🚍 Both Hwy 70 buses, #64 MVE & #78 MVE, will catch the bus at Ten Mile Grocery (17194 Hwy 70) from 8:45-9:00. These buses will not run their regular morning routes. Students that ride Bus #70 MVE and live in the area of Sunnybrook/Chivers/Shimrod will be picked up at Brazil & Sunnybrook at 8:45. The bus will not go up Sunnybrook. Students that ride Bus #57 CE and live in River Heights or River Oaks will be picked up at the Lyledale entrance of River Oaks (Lyledale & Volcanic) from 8:30-8:45. The bus will not come through River Oaks or pick-up at River Heights. All students on Bus #81 RE (Bennett, Prysock, Chatfield, New Hope areas) will catch the bus at New Hope Methodist Church (1705 New Hope Rd) from 9:00-9:15. The bus will not run its regular morning route. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work towards getting everyone back to school safely!

📢 Delayed Start Announcement Benton Public Schools will have a delayed start at 10 AM on Tuesday, January 14, 2025. 🚍 Alternate bus routes will be posted here later this evening as we are still working on them. 📞 If you feel it’s unsafe or cannot get your child to school, please contact their campus in the morning. Thank you for your understanding, and stay safe!

❄️ Snow Day Gratitude ❄️ We want to extend a heartfelt thank you to our incredible city and county teams for their hard work clearing roads during the snowstorm. Your long hours and dedication will make it possible for us to return to school sooner and safely—thank you! A special shoutout to Paul Tudor, Tracy Smart, and their team for coming in on Friday and Saturday to ensure our campuses and buildings will be ready for our return. We’re also grateful to Greg Little for walking through the buildings to ensure everything was secure and in great shape.

📢 School Update: After assessing road conditions across the county and consulting with our transportation team and local authorities, Benton School District will be CLOSED on Monday, January 13, 2025. While most roads in town and main highways are clear, several areas remain wet and have patches that are likely to refreeze tonight. Additionally, poor road conditions in the northern and western parts of our district would prevent 11 buses from completing their routes, with several others only able to run partially. We hope that allowing another day for roads and parking lots to clear will enable us to resume classes on Tuesday, January 14, 2025. Thank you for your patience and understanding. We will provide updates through our usual communication channels, including text, social media, our website, and local TV stations. Stay safe and warm, Panthers! 🫶🏼

Due to incoming winter weather and its potential impact on our area, Benton School District will be closed on Friday, January 10, 2025. Stay safe and warm!

Benton schools will be in session on Thursday, January 9, with an EARLY DISMISSAL at 1 PM. All activities and athletic events scheduled for tomorrow are canceled. If weather or road conditions change and we need to dismiss earlier or close schools for the day, we will notify families immediately through our usual communication channels. Thank you for your understanding as we prioritize the safety of our students and staff! Stay safe, Panther family! 🐾

🌶️ Benton Chili Cook-Off Fundraiser – Join the Fun! 🎉 The Benton Counseling Department is thrilled to invite YOU to our Chili Cook-Off Fundraiser! This is your chance to enjoy an evening filled with food, fun, and fantastic entertainment—all while supporting a great cause! 📅 When: Thursday, January 23, 2025 📍 Where: BHS Cafeteria ⏰ Time: 5:00 PM – 7:30 PM ✨ Here’s what’s in store: 🍲 A spicy chili competition to crown the district’s best! 🎶 Live entertainment 🛍️ A silent auction with incredible items up for grabs. Admission is FREE, but this is a fundraiser, so we hope you’ll support us by bidding in the silent auction and enjoying the event. Bring your friends, family, and appetite—we can’t wait to see you there!

❄️ Inclement Weather Procedures 🌨️ Weather can be unpredictable, and our top priority is keeping students and staff safe. Here’s what you need to know about how we handle inclement weather decisions: 📅 Timing of Decisions We strive to make decisions as early as possible, typically no later than 5:30 AM. 📢 How We’ll Notify You In the event of a school closure or delay, we’ll share updates through: 📱 Text message 📢 Social media 📺 Local TV stations 🌐 Our website We encourage all families to ensure their contact information is up to date and to stay tuned to these platforms during uncertain weather conditions. Thank you for helping us keep everyone informed and safe!

Benton Public Schools will be closed for the holiday break from Monday, December 23, through Friday, January 3. Classes will resume on Monday, January 6, 2025. We hope you enjoy a restful break filled with time spent with loved ones. Wishing you a joyful holiday season and a happy New Year!

A Heartfelt Thank You to our friends at Everett Chevrolet The Benton School District is profoundly grateful to Everett Chevrolet and the Everett Family for their incredible generosity and unwavering support of our schools and community. Their recent $15,000 donation to help pay off student lunchroom debt is an extraordinary act of kindness that will make a meaningful difference for so many families this holiday season. Their commitment to our district and their continued investment in the well-being of our students reflect the true spirit of giving and community. From all of us at Benton Schools, thank you for helping ensure every student is cared for and supported.

Rezoning Update and Public Meeting Reminder The Benton School District is preparing for the opening of Mountain View Middle School in the fall of 2025. To accommodate this exciting addition, proposed rezoning plans have been developed to determine which students will attend each middle school. Under the current proposal: Students attending Caldwell Elementary, Mountain View Elementary, and parts of Ringgold Elementary will attend Mountain View Middle School. Students attending Howard Perrin Elementary, Angie Grant Elementary, and other parts of Ringgold Elementary will attend Benton Middle School. We understand the importance of these decisions and value your input. Please join us tomorrow night for a public meeting to review the proposed plans and share your feedback: 📍 211 N. Border St. 🕓 Tuesday, December 10th, 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM (drop-in style). Your voice matters as we work to make decisions that best serve our students and families.

🏀 Basketball season is here! 🏀 Don’t miss a minute of the action—grab your season pass today! 🎟️ Season passes and individual game tickets are available online at GoFan. See you there! 📣🔥 https://gofan.co/app/school/AR4644

🎉 Congratulations to BHS Choral Director Josh Johnson for being named Director of the Year by the Arkansas Choral Directors Association! 🎶👏 We’re so proud of his dedication and the excellence he brings to the BHS choir program!

🎉 National Letter of Intent Signing Day 🎉 Join us on Wednesday, November 13, 2024, at 3:30 PM in the Arena as we celebrate our incredible student-athletes committing to play at the collegiate level! 🏆 Bring your family and friends, and let's cheer them on as they sign their letters of intent. Let’s show our support for their hard work and dedication! Congratulations to our signees: 🏐 Isabella Lagemann — Volleyball, LSU 🏐 Parker Stearns — Volleyball, Arkansas State ⚾️ Broc Mattox — Baseball, Arkansas State Mountain Home 🏀 Harrison Pickett — Boys Basketball, UAPB We can’t wait to see everyone there! #BSDProud #SigningDay #GoPanthers #NLI

A Big Thank You to Everett Chevrolet! We’re thrilled to announce that, for the second year, our counselors at Benton Middle School, Benton Junior High, and Benton High School have partnered with Everett Chevrolet to provide strong, durable backpacks for students who need them throughout the year! Thanks to Everett Chevrolet’s generous donation, our counselors were able to purchase 73 backpacks to distribute across our secondary campuses, helping ensure that every student is ready to succeed. Thank you, Everett Chevrolet, for your continued support of our students and for strengthening our Benton Schools community!

Benton Public Schools will be closed November 25 - 29 for Thanksgiving Break.

🏐 Good luck to our Lady Panthers in the State Playoffs! 🏐 Our Lady Panthers are heading to Van Buren today to kick off the State Playoffs. The game starts at 5 PM as the Panthers take on Jacksonville. 🎟️ Attending the Game? Tickets must be purchased online: https://www.ahsaa.org/tickets. 📺 Can’t make it? Cheer on the Lady Panthers from home with a free live stream at AAAscoreboard.com! Good luck, and let's go, Panthers!! 🐾💪 #GoPanthers #StatePlayoffs #PantherPride