Marble – Cherokee County Schools has just two years to solve a big problem or it won’t have enough money – an overabundance of campuses.
The school district had been using proceeds from a quarter-cent sales tax many argue was approved by Cherokee County voters for just that purpose. However, county commissioners took advantage of a caveat that allowed them to redirect the funds.
It was good news for county programs, workers and taxpayers. Commissioners were able to keep programs intact and give workers a raise, and they did it without raising taxes.
It was bad news for Cherokee County Schools, which lost an estimated $1.2 million per year that it was using to supplement maintenance costs for the 13-campus district.
Cherokee County Schools has benefited from two sales tax measures – a half-cent sales tax (Article 40/42, which remains in effect for schools use) and a quarter-cent sales tax (Article 46). About $2 million remained in the Article 46 account for schools’ use, enough to maintain normal operations for about two years.
Between now and then, school board members will have to develop a plan that receives approval from the board of commissioners to reduce annual maintenance costs by the amount lost from Article 46 proceeds.
The school board has been discussing limited school consolidation plans for the last two years and had submitted a plan – passed by a sharply divided board – to the board of commissioners for its approval. That plan would have created a new Murphy High School and consolidated grades 6-12 onto a single campus, location to be determined later.
Commissioners unanimously rejected that plan, mainly the part about putting such a wide range of ages in the same school. Although not asked to do so, the commissioners passed a resolution calling for an 800-student high school beside the recently completed Schools of Innovation in Peachtree.
The plans
For now, the school board has cast a blind eye on the commissioners’ solution. The school district fed data into an artificial intelligence program that spat out funding estimates for five proposals but not the one proposed by county commissioners.
The five plans evaluated by AI were:
- Proposal A: A grades 6-12 consolidated school done in a single phase with additional renovations as proposed by school board member Jeff Tatham. This is the plan that was rejected by the board of commissioners.
Proposal B: A comprehensive school consolidation done in three or more phases as proposed by school board member Steve Coleman. This plan would result in two new high schools, one in Murphy and one in Andrews, as well as maintaining a high school in Hiwassee Dam. This plan also results in pre-kindergarten through eighth-grade campuses, something county commissioners won’t likely support.
- Proposal C: A school consolidation done in two major phases. It would build a new pre-K through grade 5 school for 350 students in Hiwassee Dam, close Ranger Elementary School and relocate Peachtree Elementary students to Martins Creek Elementary, which would undergo an upgrade to its sewage treatment to accommodate the growth. It would combine Andrews High and Middle schools at Andrew High and relocate Andrews Elementary to the former Andrews Middle. In its second phase, it would construct a new grades 6-12 consolidated school in Peachtree. County commissioners already oppose a 6-12 configuration.
- Proposal D: A consolidated plan with shared athletics facilities done in three phases. It would result in a new high school for 1,000 students and a middle school campus for 800 students, followed by renovations of the Andrews Middle and Murphy Elementary campuses.
- Proposal E: A consolidated plan with shared athletics facilities and elementary schools. It would consolidate high schools and middle schools with new campuses, and build new elementary schools in the east and west ends of the county.
The costs
Funding sources include needs-based state grants of $62 million for a high school and $52 million for a middle school, local matches of up to $3.1 million, and debt service of loans needed to cover funding gaps.
The smallest funding gap would occur with Proposal A, the one rejected by county commissioners. It assumes one needs-based grant for a high school. The total cost would be $159.3 million, with a funding gap of $74.2 million.
The biggest funding gap comes from Coleman’s plan. The total cost would be $427.2 million in current dollars, assuming that the county would qualify for two needs-based grants, one for a high school and one for a middle school. The plan would have a funding gap of $280.5 million.
Proposal C would cost $215.1 million with a funding gap of $81.3 million. Proposal D would cost $261.5 million with a funding gap of $106.8 million. Proposal E would cost $381.6 million with a funding gap of $177.8 million.
Commissioners did not discuss school funding plans during Monday night’s board meeting.