Students returning to school amid numerous projects.

Published 6:00 am Tuesday, August 11, 2026

Greenwood High School Principal Adam Hatcher (right), Warren County Public Schools Board Chair Garry Chaffin (left) and other WCPS personnel cheer after cutting the ribbon on the newly renovated Greenwood High School on Thursday last week.
(JACK DOBBS / Daily News)

Students are returning to classrooms across the region with some changes in store.

Warren County Public Schools is ready for the year as two long-in-the-works projects to enhance education for students are now up and running ahead of the first day of school on Wednesday.

Wednesday will see the first Warren County students walk through the halls of the district’s new Impact Center and the newly renovated Greenwood High School.

“With the ever-changing times, we know that everything needs to evolve,” district Superintendent Rob Clayton said during the ribbon cutting for the Greenwood project. ” … (This is) directly part of that vision to intentionally create spaces for our students to engage … and preparing them for that ever-changing world.”

Greenwood’s “facelift,” as some described it, began nine years ago with some geothermal and HVAC work. Later on, the district began doing facade work on the building and some improvements to the roads around the school.

Work then moved inside. Greenwood received new flooring made of Kentucky hemp wood in all rooms along with new paint and lighting, wider hallways, a new auxiliary gymnasium, new safety measures and eight new classrooms, among the changes.

Email newsletter signup

One of the larger additions was a new media center for students, replacing an older one that was converted into classrooms. The new center is a two-story room complete with bookshelves and computers, with a large staircase going upwards leading to study areas.

The district’s new Impact Center for Leadership and Innovation will also welcomes students this week.

The center will provide science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics instruction to students across 18 different fields, including robotics, design, aeronautics and artificial intelligence.

Officials have said the center will help students become trained and able to receive employment or certifications in these fields of study.

“You highly train a kid in all these areas, there’s not anybody that’s going to look at that kid and be like, ‘That’s a waste of their high school,’ ” robotics and advanced systems academy head Michael Critchelow said previously. “They’re so prepared (…) — we’re developing a better high school graduate, in my mind.”

The Bowling Green Independent Schools District is continuing work on its large-scale renovations at Bowling Green Junior High School, and alterations with parking at the school and The Pit soccer field are expected, along with traffic delays along Campbell Lane.

All drop-off cars must enter the campus on Campbell Lane, driving around the back of the school and dropping students off either on the side of the building or in the back.

Cars may exit the campus on the front driveway, but only school buses can enter campus there.

Construction work will be limited to the exterior only this fall, with no interruptions anticipated for inside the school.

The 18-month project will see the school’s office expanded, along with the cafeteria, food storage areas and the kitchen. Lockers will be removed, a new media center will be built and a new hallway will be added as well, allowing existing classrooms to be reworked.

Opening day for WCPS and BGISD is set for Wednesday, along with Allen County Schools, Barren County Schools, Butler County Schools and Edmonson County Schools. Hart schools return Aug. 13.

Russellville Independent School District’s first day was Tuesday, and Logan County Schools returned on Aug. 5. Students in the Simpson County School District are headed back Aug. 19 and Glasgow Independent students will start the year on Aug. 25.

About Jack Dobbs

Jack covers city government for the Daily News. Originally from Simpson County, he attended Western Kentucky University and graduated in 2022 with a degree in journalism.

More by Jack