Superintendent Defends Need for Mount Vernon

Construction is under way for Mount Vernon Elementary School for its fall 2012 opening, and a controversy about whether the facility is needed appeared to be put to rest during Monday’s Board of Education Committee of the Whole meeting.

School Board member Mike Miller, whose Post 1 include , initiated the discussion at the end of the April 11 meeting during his board member comments.

Miller said he was given “erroneous” information at the February in-house board retreat. He also said the board wasn’t required to build Mount Vernon, which was approved in a 2007 bond referendum.

Through his research, Miller said he learned that the funds used to build the $13.7 million school could be used or credited toward debt. The school, which has an estimated student capacity of 872 students, also required $4.2 million for site work. 

However, Miller conceded at the end of his remarks that discussing the project’s need “may be moot” since contracts had already been issued on it.

Superintendent Gordon Pritz verified and documented Mount Vernon’s now five-year timeline by projecting some of the school’s board-approved milestones on a screen for board members to view. These included:

• Two new elementary schools included in the Georgia Department of Education’s approved Five-Year Plan in 2006.
• General Obligation Bond approved by the board and voters in March 2007.
• State application for new elementary school, later named Mount Vernon, submitted to Department of Education in 2008.
• Land purchase approval for Mount Vernon approved by School Board in 2008.
• Current Five-Year Plan approved by Department of Education showing Mount Vernon Elementary School in 2010.
• Guaranteed maximum price for site work for Mount Vernon unanimously approved by School Board for $4.2 million at Aug. 3, 2010, meeting.
• Guaranteed maximum price for construction for Mount Vernon approved unanimously by the School Board for $13,733,908 at Nov. 1, 2010, meeting.

After going over the timeline with board members, Pritz then said that he didn’t recall telling them that Mount Vernon was no longer needed when the subject was discussed at the board retreat. The superintendent then followed up his timeline data by producing enrollment numbers at the schools located near Mount Vernon, which require the use of a combined 61 mobile classrooms due to the school space limitations.

Based on these elementary school figures, enrollment had increased since March 2009 to March 2011 at by 17 students to 489, at Beulah by 13 students to 442, at by 49 students to 584, at by 15 students to 529, and at by seven students to 505.

Combined, the five schools were averaging 20 more students over the two-year period. All but Beulah are considered over capacity.

However, the district’s figures also showed significant elementary school enrollment declines over the same two-year span at by 61 students to 473, at by 56 students to 810, and by 69 students to 668.

On average, the three schools’ enrollment dropped by 62 students. Mount Carmel Manchester are considered under capacity, while Sweetwater is consider over.

Pritz followed the enrollment information by stating the Atlanta Regional Commission’s report that indicated Douglas County would double its population in 20 years to about 300,000.

The county over the past decade, going from a population of 92,174 in 2000 to 132,403 in 2010, census records show.

“As I said in February, we need to continue to monitor this growth, and it’d be foolish to respond to this with a knee-jerk reaction,” Pritz said. “I suggest Mr. Miller we look at it again in the fall, but I expect the school will still be needed.”

After the meeting, Miller said the Mount Vernon Elementary discussion verified to him the importance of board members asking questions.

“If there are alternatives to tax and spend, we need to seek it out,” he said. “As a board, we don’t need to be afraid to ask questions. I feel comfortable now based on questions the board asked and in the interest of the board in seeking the best economic use of these facilities.”

Following the Committee of the Whole meeting, the board approved the following items 5-0 during its regular meeting:

Purchasing the remedial reading program Read 180 for New Manchester High School for $39,350 from federal ARRA funds. The program targets middle and high school students who struggle with reading fluency and reading comprehension.

• Purchasing math and reading materials for Lithia Springs Elementary for students in third to fifth grade for $45,128.33 from federal funds.
• Approving GAR Inc.’s bid of $223,893.16 for replacing 29 classroom heating, ventilating and air conditioning units at South Douglas Elementary from SPLOST funds. The project also includes replacing five air handlers. The school’s equipment is “20 years old and beyond economical repair,” Chief Operating Officer Dudley Spruill said.
• Approving annual renewal with Century Consultants for providing software maintenance, support and upgrade of its student information system for $104,553.24 from general funds. During the discussion, it was revealed Douglas County is the only school system in the state using Century and that it has used it for more than eight years. Board member D.T. Jackson of Post 2, which includes , asked if there were other options besides Century, and he was assured there were by Catherine Magouyrk, associate superintendent of student achievement and leadership.

Board members were also provided an update on the district’s , which ended Friday and received 348 responses. Chief of Staff David Whitfield said participants were asked to consider and prioritize school system needs and indicate their level of importance. The top three responses were textbooks and instructional equipment, providing technology for classrooms, and maintenance and renovation.

Early in the meeting, Pritz said the school system was one of 100 businesses recognized for being among the top workplaces in the metro Atlanta area. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution published the list in its Sunday edition.

Correction: This article originally said Mount Vernon is set to open in the fall of 2013, not 2012.