New school opens to ease overcrowding in Forsyth County

FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — Thursday morning, about 1,000 students head back to class at a brand new school in Forsyth County.

Brandywine Elementary School was built with one goal in mind: to help ease some of the overcrowding at the other schools in the county. The school offers plenty of room for the area's growing population.

Principal Todd Smith says he's very excited about having students explore the school.

"Everything will be wireless. We have a science lab," Smith said.

Most importantly, the school also has room. Smith said overcrowding was the number one problem at other schools in the county, especially at his last school.

"The capacity was 637 students. We varied anywhere from 700 to 800 and one year we got all the way up to 900," Smith said.Second grade teacher Kellie Tapp says Brandywine Elementary will help ease the congestion.

"And doing classrooms in trailers, so it was definitely time to expand," Tapp said.
 
She hopes the new students will recognize the upgrades at the school, from the vibrant high ceilings in the halls, to new active board systems in the classrooms.
 
"So you can use your finger on them and not a pen and multiple people can write on it, which we didn't have last year," Tapp said.
 
"They know that we feel that they are important and we want them to be here. Be happy, be safe," Smith said.
 
The new teachers transferred from other schools in the county, and from schools in Gwinnett and Fulton counties.

Cox Media Group