THE FESTIVITIES STARTED 8:00 MONDAY MORNING AT WATERFRONT PARK. IT’S THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL FOR J. CPS AFTER WHAT’S BEEN A CHALLENGING YEAR FOR THE DISTRICT. ADDIE MEINERS SPOKE WITH THE SUPERINTENDENT ABOUT WHAT PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE. AS SCHOOL YEAR CAME TO A CLOSE FOR JCPS ON FRIDAY AFTERNOON, SUPERINTENDENT DOCTOR BRIAN YEARWOOD REFLECTED ON WHAT WAS HIS FIRST YEAR IN THE POSITION, DESCRIBING THIS YEAR AS HISTORIC YEAR WAS REFLECTION CENTERED ON WHAT MANY CONVERSATIONS INSIDE OF THIS ROOM HAVE FOCUSED ON. THIS YEAR, THE DISTRICT’S $188 MILLION BUDGET DEFICIT. WE PLANNED, ORGANIZED, GATHERED FEEDBACK, ADJUSTED, AND ULTIMATELY DELIVERED A HUNDRED AND $15 MILLION IN SAVINGS TO STABILIZE, TO STABILIZE THIS DISTRICT. THOSE SAVINGS CAME FROM THINGS LIKE JOB CUTS AND BUILDING REDUCTIONS. BUT YEARWOOD SAYS THEY DID NOT CHANGE THE CLASSROOM EXPERIENCE. HE ALSO NOTED THAT THEY DID NOT NEED TO ASK TAXPAYERS FOR MORE MONEY. IT’S STABILIZING THE DISTRICT AND SETTING IT UP FOR THE FUTURE. WE WERE ABLE TO ESTABLISH GOALS THAT WOULD ALLOW US TO START BEGIN THE PROGRESS IN OUR ACADEMIC ENVIRONMENT. WE WERE ABLE TO FOCUS IN ON OUR SYSTEMS. THAT ALLOWED US TO ENSURE THAT OUR STUDENTS WERE RECEIVING THE BEST FROM US IN OUR CLASSROOMS, AND WE WILL CONTINUE ON THAT PATHWAY GOING FORWARD. WELL, IT HAS BEEN A HISTORIC YEAR FOR BOTH THE DISTRICT AND SUPERINTENDENT, DOCTOR BRIAN YEARWOOD. WHEN ASKED IF HE BELIEVES HE’LL BE ABLE TO BALANCE THE BUDGET OVER THE NEXT THREE YEARS, HE ONCE AGAIN SAID HE PLANS TO STABILIZE THE DISTRICT FROM THE VANHOOSE EDUCATION CENTER. I’M ADDIE MEINERS WLKY NEWS. NEARLY 7000 JCPS SENIORS WILL BE RECEIVING THEIR DIPLOMAS OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS. TODAY, THEIR GRADUATION CEREMONIES FOR SIX SCHOOLS, INCLUDING SOUTHERN AND JEFFERSONTOWN. LATER TONIGHT, TEN MORE SCHOOLS WILL HOST CEREMONIES TOMORROW. THE OTHER 11 WILL B