WINNSBORO – A grand-opening and ribbon-cutting for the Fairfield County School District’s new teacher housing – the Village at Winnsboro – was held in front of the village’s new TruVista Teacher Technology and Gathering Center. The village is located behind the Fairfield County School District office on Highway 321 By-pass.
Dr. Sue Rex, chair of the Fairfield County Education Foundation, welcomed the crowd and thanked the stakeholders and investors for making the village possible.
Sara Faucett shared how the United Way was able to support this initiative with a $600,000 investment… “When Teachers have the support they deserve, they can do amazing things teaching our children,” Faucett said.
USC College of Education Dean Dr. Tommy Hodges announced that USC has signed a three-year-lease on one of the houses for their Student Teaching Interns.
“I am so blessed to be working in Fairfield and to be a part of this project,” said Carla Cook, one of the USC student teaching interns living on the property.
“Fairfield is not like the huge, mega-school-districts. We are more like a family. And I get to live in a neighborhood with members of my education family.”
TruVista’s Carla Finch was also on hand to share personal stories about the power of a teacher to change lives.
Fairfield Superintendent Dr. Tony Hemingway closed the ceremony.
“This one-of-a-kind teacher village will help us recruit and retain world class educators,” Dr. Hemingway said. “Every child deserves the best teacher. This village will help Fairfield support our students and their teachers. And the new TruVista Center is a true Collaboration Station!”
Following the ceremony, attendees were invited to tour some of the new homes as well as the TruVista Center.