As the school SPLOST that brought the complete renovation of Griffin High School and other schools is expiring, it is time once again for the board of education to decide if our current facility and technology needs warrant another SPLOST.

 

This afternoon the Griffin-Spalding County Board of Education will meet at 4:00pm to consider calling for a March 2012 school SPLOST election. The projects that would be included:

• Provide technology infrastructure, hardware, and support
• Maintain facilities that have been built or renovated with past SPLOSTs

Jim Smith, Assistant Superintendent and Chief Finance Officer, said, " Currently SPLOST dollars fund technology in the classroom. If we let the current SPLOST lapse in June when it is set to expire, we will not have funds for replacement of computers, upgrading our network to handle more and more users and mobile devices, and the infrastructure to prepare for a 21st century classroom.

 

"The technology projects that are needed would bring a quality of environment that employees and students would feel and use - but not necessarily see: infrastructure making high-density wireless systems work in schools and cloud technology. This is the behind-the -scenes, in-the -walls equipment that supports teaching and learning for our students and employees."

 

Currently first generation wireless access points support a handful of computers in classrooms. High density wireless systems would support hundreds of computers and mobile devices throughout schools.

 

On the facility side, Bruce Ballard, Director of Maintenance and Facilities, said, "From the time of the first SPLOST, we promised our community that we would never let our facilities get in the state of disrepair we found ourselves in 1996. It's hard to believe that schools built in the late 1990s need renovation. Projects would provide additional classroom space at three schools and renovate the current Enrichment Center to house a pre-K center, freeing up class room space at all elementary schools."

 

The recommendation that the board of education would consider would be a three-year school SPLOST set to raise a projected $25 million with no bonded indebtedness. Projects would be on a pay-as-you-go system.

 

The current school SPLOST is on target to complete the projects underway and meet debt service requirements. The average monthly collection is $711,539.01.

 

# # # # # #