County school officials on Thursday night pointed out the pitfalls of Signal Mountain pulling out of the county school system.
A question and answer session was held by Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger for residents of Signal Mountain regarding the creation of a Signal Mountain school district, from the perspective of the county. Most of the questions submitted prior to the meeting had to do with the quality of education students are receiving presently versus the possibilities if Signal Mountain had control of the schools.
How Hamilton County schools could be more adaptive to the desires of the community was answered by Superintendent Bryan Johnson. He said that different offerings are available at the different schools, and Hamilton County looks at opportunities and students desires and works together with the principals of each school to decide what to offer. The HCDE is adaptive to what the school needs to be successful, he said, and every school in the Hamilton County system is different. As an example, he said the International Baccalaureate program is not available in every school. The county spends about $100,000 per year on this program.
The IB program is protected and will remain at the building even if Signal Mountain splits off from the Hamilton County school district, he said, because the existing school has an obligation to continue to operate for Walden and the unincorporated areas on the mountain, as part of the county system regardless of what Signal Mountain does. The Signal Mountain School Viability Committee (SMSVC) study has proposed that those students will be allowed to attend schools in the new district. And, because students who live in the city limits of the Town of Signal Mountain are also residents of Hamilton County, they could opt to attend the county schools, and would be eligible to attend Hamilton County magnet schools if space is available, however they would be at the end of the list.
Reasons that Dr. Johnson gave for staying with the Hamilton County district included plans for arts and STEM programs. In the next 10 years many jobs will become available in those fields, so the schools will need to align students for them, said the superintendent. He said that the focus will be to prepare every single student by pushing them to their upper limits.
And the larger district would have more resources to address special needs such as a program for autistic children. Currently, special education is provided at all levels. An Individual Education Plan (IEP) is developed for each child with special needs, and it would move with the student. Although any school system would have the obligation to provide special education services, because of the size of the Hamilton County district, it is able to respond better and more quickly to specific student needs, than a smaller system. It is very costly, but if needed, a student is provided with one-on-one help, he said.
Although Signal Mountain students rank high in Hamilton County, it is true that they are below state grade level in certain areas, said Superintendent Johnson. This is partially because standards have become more rigorous than they were several years ago, he said, and because assessments have changed. He said that across the state of Tennessee the numbers look lower.
No price could be put on the buildings that hold the schools, the crowd was told, because they are not for sale. Signal Mountain Middle High School was built in 2004 with an interlocal agreement among the Town of Signal Mountain, Walden and Hamilton County Schools. At the time, Signal Mountain and Walden contributed $10 million with the county schools paying $33 million for a total cost of $43 million. Because there was opposition from the town at that time, there was a fear, even then, that the town would claim the building and start a school system. This resulted in a contract that gave the responsibility of operating the school to the Hamilton County Board of Education for the life of the facility. An existing contract cannot be changed, it was stated. Ownership of the building could be transferred, but all parties involved with the original contract would have to agree. The yearly maintenance of this building is $678,000.
Nolan Elementary was built in 1997 for $6.8 million and an addition was made in 2014 for $4.9 million. It will be paid off in 2030. Yearly maintenance of this building is $260,000.
Thrasher Elementary cost $734,000 when it was built in 1961 and it is now paid for. The maintenance cost each year for this school is approximately $208,000.
As for furnishing the buildings, the SMSVC’s proposed budget included $24,000 for a new central office, but nothing for furnishing the other buildings. The responsibility for maintenance and furnishings would be that of the new school district.
There were quite a few things left out of the SMSVC’s budget, according to Hamilton County’s review of it. In Hamilton County, some costs are not broken out school by school such as paying for Internet service and software. Also, the basis for the revenue might have been a little too high, the audience was told. There are also some problems with costs of health insurance. The costs will likely be different because the county system is self insured.
Teachers with tenure would be guaranteed a job in Hamilton County, but not necessarily at a Signal Mountain school. The new school district would have to have the same level of experience as in Hamilton County. So teachers that are in schools with an abundance of young inexperienced teachers may be moved. A new school system would have to guarantee that the rights of teachers do not change, such as salary and retirement, but other factors may, such as the cost of insurance. The sample budget assumes costs will be the same, but that probably will not be true for the smaller district.
By Tennessee state law, there must be 1,500 students as part of the requirements to have a referendum on a new school district. That number might require students who now attend magnet schools to come back to Signal Mountain. Moving forward from there, the town council would have to hold a special election funded by Signal Mountain, followed by an election of a new board of education. Enrollment numbers would need to be firmed up and personnel and facilities plans would have to be created, officials said.