Welcome Back, LEADers! Important Information to Be Prepared for the 2024-25 School Year
We are excited to reunite our students, teachers, staff, and families on August 6! With the first day of school quickly approaching, we wanted to make sure we all start the school year off prepared and with the right attitude to have our best year yet.
LEAD Principals Share What They Are Looking Forward to This Year
Briana Shelton, LEAD Cameron:
“I’m most looking forward to welcoming new students into our amazing community and re-establishing connections with students returning to Cameron.”
Jonathan Brocco, LEAD Southeast Middle:
“I cannot wait to have our entire Lobos community back together! In this new year, we’re most looking forward to the opportunity to continue delivering on our mission and promise to Southeast Nashville. LSEM is the place where everyone belongs; we’re grateful for another year to serve our students and families.”
Dominique Smith, LEAD Neely’s Bend:
“We are so excited to welcome back LEADers for the 24-25 school year. This year is about pushing ourselves as members of our community, both inside and outside the school, while also pushing ourselves to achieve excellence in academics as we continue to Learn and Grow! #IfnotusthenWHO?”
Maggie Sneed, LEAD Academy:
“I am so excited to see students after a summer apart – high schoolers grow up so much in just a few short weeks!”
Genevieve Hinnant, LEAD Southeast High:
“I am looking to welcome our fabulous students and families back for the 2024-25 school year. We are excited to meet our new members of the LSEH family starting 9th grade. This year LEAD Southeast High will continue our trajectory of academic excellence while preparing every single student for college and life.”
Be Prepared
Remember, at all LEAD schools, our students wear uniforms. A consistent uniform ensures that students are professional and prepared for class, ready to focus on learning and not on wardrobe choices.
While many schools supply the items students need for the classroom, each school has a list of recommended items that you can provide for your students if you are able.
School Start Times
Don’t be late on the first day of school! Below are the start and dismissal times for all of our schools.
- LEAD Academy
- Arrival: 7:05 a.m.
- Dismissal: 2:40 p.m.
- LEAD Cameron
- Arrival: 8:30 a.m.
- Dismissal: 4:00 p.m.
- LEAD Neely’s Bend
- Arrival: 8:30 a.m.
- Dismissal: 4:00 p.m.
- LEAD Southeast Middle
- Arrival: 8:20 a.m.
- Dismissal: 4:00 p.m.
- LEAD Southeast High
- Arrival: 6:55 a.m.
- Dismissal: 2:30 p.m.
Bus Routes
Make sure to familiarize yourself with bus routes for this school year! View the bus routes for each school below:
Staying Motivated in the New School Year
It can be challenging to get back into the swing of things after the summer break. Here are some tips to stay motivated this school year, provided by the College Board:
1. Prioritize Assignments
Make a list to get an overall picture of your workload before tackling any of it. Then, make a plan.
It’s best to prioritize your more challenging and time-consuming assignments. Although it’s tempting to work on the simplest tasks first, you’ll be able to manage your schedule better if you start with the ones that take more time and effort to accomplish.
2. Set Attainable Goals in Smaller Chunks
If you’re having trouble writing a long paper for class because it seems like such a big task, stop focusing on that final page count. Break the paper down into subsections, and focus on each one individually.
It’s much easier to stay motivated and stop procrastinating by setting goals in smaller, more attainable chunks. It’s also a lot easier on your mental health.
3. Create New Challenges
Change things up to challenge yourself. For example, if last semester you wrote a narrative piece in your creative writing class, maybe try writing a poem this time. If you wrote a book report on a biography last time around, try picking another subject you haven’t tackled, such as history.
4. Find a Social Support Network
You are surrounded by people who want to see you succeed, so don’t be afraid to ask for help! Mentors can be teachers, family friends, or even your school counselors. They are there to help you reach your goals and can help you create a study plan that works for you.
Try reaching out to your friends and peers in school, and see if you can all bring together a focused study group. Sometimes, it can even be healthy to vent your frustrations to others to clear your head.
5. Acknowledge Your Accomplishments
Praising yourself for the things you’ve accomplished is a great way to spark motivation. Give yourself a quick reward when you complete an assignment or task. Perhaps you can turn your phone off and only turn it back on once you’ve completed your work. Or reward yourself by taking a walk or getting a snack—whatever works for you. Then move on to the next project.
