SPLOST vote set for March 15

The county school board unanimously approved a resolution for the referendum, 3-0, Dec. 14. BOE members Jim Patton and Arlen Johnson were unable to attend the meeting.

“We’ve got to make sure to keep our facilities at a certain level,” said Madison County interim school superintendent Allen McCannon.

McCannon outlined the school board’s plans Dec. 14. School leaders see the creation of a new high school, which would run roughly in the $35-to-$40 million range, as financially unfeasible.

Instead, officials want to expand and renovate the current high school. They aim to add multiple classes, bringing the number of instructional classrooms to around 90 at MCHS. McCannon said the board intends to renovate the school’s cafeteria, kitchen, media center and fine arts facilities. He noted that there is congestion in the hallways during classroom changes and that hallways would be expanded.

However, expansion and renovation plans are not set in stone. The interim superintendent said more specifics of what will be renovated will be worked out and publicized well in advance of the March SPLOST vote, adding that the board agreed in principle Tuesday to seek a renewal of the one-cent tax for facility improvements. School administrators still must meet with architects in the next few weeks to determine what is financially and structurally feasible. There is no time frame on when the renovations would be completed, but officials said the project will require multiple phases.

At Comer Elementary, school leaders want to build a new media center and use the existing library for classroom space. McCannon said MCHS and Comer are the only schools in the county still using mobile classrooms and the planned projects would eliminate the need for the mobile units.

The school board’s move comes as interest rates are at a low point in American history and costs for building are extremely low, McCannon said, adding that it’s an opportune time to address facility needs.

“The time to move is now,” he said. “Construction costs are down about 20 percent.”

McCannon said a portion of the 2011 SPLOST will go toward debt payments on the new Madison County Middle School. But most of the SPLOST funds will go to the MCHS and Comer projects. In fact, the next three SPLOST renewals will be used to fund the planned projects. McCannon said the schools expect to bring in roughly $16.3 million in sales tax funds for the projects in coming years, adding that the Georgia Department of Education is expected to pitch in another $3.5-to-$5.5 million for the upgrades. The BOE intends to go ahead and establish a bonding arrangement to secure capital for the projects, then use sales tax funds to pay back the debt.

Meanwhile, the school system is reaching the end of its debt payments for the early 1990s construction of Danielsville Elementary School. The BOE has typically issued a bond millage rate to property owners to cover that debt payment, something that is separate from the property tax rate for general school operations. McCannon announced Tuesday that the board plans to discontinue that bond rate, wahich generates roughly $660,000 countywide in property tax revenues.

“Given the economic times and the situation we’re in, we’ve decided it’s best not to have a bond millage,” he said.

McCannon said the elimination of the bond rate and the renewal of the one-cent sales tax will allow the schools to address facility needs while not creating any new tax burdens locally.

In other matters Dec. 14, the board learned that numerous students in the school system received flu shots or mist thanks to the county health department. McCannon thanked the health department and noted that 34 percent of county students have received the vaccine, including 427 whose parents are uninsured. The schools with the highest vaccination rate were Ila Elementary, with 59 percent of students vaccinated, and Danielsville Elementary, with 51 percent.

The board listened to a “teachable moment” presentation from Janet Carlson and Martha Vaughn, media specialists from Ila Elementary School and the MCHS Freshman Academy. Carlson and Vaughn stood at the Smart Board in the BOE meeting room and demonstrated numerous video teaching tools Madison County teachers now have in the classroom.

In another matter, the Madison County School District is planning to submit a petition Nov. 1, 2011, to begin operating as a “Charter System” for the 2012-2013 school-year. All school systems in Georgia must choose between remaining a “status quo” system, becoming an “IE2 system” or becoming a “Charter System.” Leaders say the charter system will give county schools a greater level of autonomy than the other options. New Madison County assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction Sherrie Gibney-Sherman reported that the schools have had great community participation in the charter planning process. The Madison County Charter System Oversight Team discussed charter planning Dec. 14 in the BOE meeting room prior to the board’s meeting.