KINGSPORT — The initial faculty of eight teachers has been chosen for the Innovation Academy of Northeast Tennessee, a joint STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) platform school operated by Kingsport and Sullivan County.
Innovation Academy will open Aug. 6 for 160 students in grades 6-7. Students will be split evenly between the two school systems, 40 per system per grade.
The four teachers from Sullivan County are Jessica Carr, Mitch Cox, Felicia Kellner and Jacqueline Smith. No information was available Tuesday on their past employment or school systems.
The four teachers from Kingsport are Karoline Berg, Vanessa Greenlee, Greg Jones and Scott Reis.
Reis comes from Dobyns-Bennett High School. He was a math teacher who started there in January 2010.
Greenlee was a language arts teacher at Sevier Middle School, where she has worked since the 2008-09 school year.
Jones, who recently completed his master’s degree plus 30 hours, had a three-month internship with Kingsport City Schools in October 2011. Jones worked as a substitute in the Sullivan County school system and was an interim teacher in Greeneville. He is certified for government and economics.
Berg was a Washington County teacher of sixth and eighth grade math since August 2008 and before that taught three years in Gwinnett County, Ga.
Innovation Academy’s principal is Sandy Watkins, who was appointed earlier this month by Sullivan County Director of Schools Jubal Yennie and Kingsport Superintendent Lyle Ailshie.
Watkins announced the teachers in a news release Tuesday and said they will be collaborating with her over the summer to create an innovative, project-based curriculum that will challenge and engage all students in the school.
STEM will be integrated in all subject areas, including English and social studies.
Innovation Academy will be located in the former Brookside Elementary School in Bloomingdale.