School Board to continue look at area facility needs
Aiken County Board of Education members will continue their discussion of facility needs at a special meeting at the district office tonight at 7 p.m.
The focus of the meeting will be on the trustees' tours of six schools targeted by the district administration as priorities for facility concerns.
The School Board is taking a comprehensive look at facilities at a time when rates for a possible bond issue would be relatively low. Any borrowing in excess of 8 percent of Aiken County's total assessed value would require the board members to get voter approval in a bond election.
"Our role is to provide as much accurate information as we can," said Superintendent Dr. Beth Everitt. "We want to make sure the board members have the facts to see what decisions need to be made."
As district schools were closing for the Christmas holidays Dec. 18, board members visited North Augusta High School, Aiken High School, Jackson Middle School, Ridge Spring-Monetta Elementary/Middle School, Leavelle McCampbell Middle School and the Aiken County Career and Technology Center.
District administrators have described five of the schools as aging facilities with extensive needs. Board members will have to address whether they should get major renovations and additions or whether new schools are warranted in some situations.
Aiken High has 20 mobile classrooms on a sprawling campus, while North Augusta High has eight mobile classrooms and little room for growth or renovation at its current location.
The sixth school, the Career Center, does have some facility needs. However, that school is growing significantly and may need additions to accommodate that growth, Deputy Superintendent David Caver said last month.
Board members are also expected to schedule a series of community meetings in each of the five attendance areas in the districts. The intent, said Everitt, is to provide parents and other residents the opportunity to discuss their own facility concerns.
The board could also set up open house visits soon for the six priority schools so they can see the needs directly, Everitt said.
"I expect we'll share our impressions from those visits," said board member Ray Fleming. "Some of us were seeing some of the schools for the first time and actually saw what they were like. The administration brought these six schools to us in their evaluation that they are in most need of help at this time. It's the recognition that we have to start somewhere with our facility needs."
The district office is located at 1000 Brookhaven Drive.
Contact Rob Novit at rnovit@aikenstandard.com.