SC BOE Discusses Proposed Elementary Restructure & Eastanollee Elementary

At the Oct. 15 Stephens County Board of Education meeting, held in the High School Auditorium, the Stephens County School System presented information on the current elementary school structure and a proposal for reopening Eastanollee Elementary and restructuring the elementary schools from the current three elementary schools – based on grade levels – back to the traditional PreK-5th grade (PK-5) to accommodate growth in student enrollment.

As well as school board members and numerous faculty and staff members from the school district, approximately 100 parents and other concerned citizens attended the meeting. 

School Superintendent Dr. Connie Franklin opened the presentation portion of the meeting, talking about the current structure and alignment of elementary grades in Stephens County and in the state.

She talked about the circumstances that led to the closure of Eastanollee Elementary as a cost cutting measure and the shift to the current alignment in 2015, and highlighted a few positive aspects of the system.

Franklins said there are a number of questions that come into play when considering what direction the school district should look for resolutions to increasing growth in the district.

Franklin stressed the challenges that multiple transitions between schools can cause for young students.

She outlined the proposal under consideration that would accommodate expected growth in the community, and reduce concerns such as student struggles with multiple transitions.

Franklin then turned the presentation over to Stith, who first talked about school population sizes and available classrooms.

He spoke of the growth in Stephens County and its potential impact on schools.

He talked about several different options available for addressing the potential growth in student population and lack of classroom space.

Stith talked about the impact the current alignment has on student transportation, with some students spending nearly two hours on a bus to get from school to home.

Another key point in Stith’s presentation included information on surveys of stakeholders, including parents, School Governance Teams and school faculty and staff, with results showing 75 percent, 83 percent and 70.2 percent, respectively, in favor of restructuring the elementary schools to a K-5 alignment as opposed to the current alignment where each school houses two grade levels.  

The estimated cost of renovating Eastanollee to bring it back online as a full-time elementary school is $10,500,000, which would be funded from ESPLOST. This includes a new roof, HVAC, plumbing, and septic system repairs, painting, flooring, kitchen, parking lot, playground, and a fire alarm system and other necessary repairs and upgrades. Stith pointed out that a number of those repairs, such as the new roof, will need to be undertaken to maintain the building’s integrity whether the restructuring was approved or not, meaning that some of $10,500,000 estimate will need to be incurred regardless of the decision on the elementary school alignment. It was also stated that the options of adding a new school, or adding classrooms to existing schools, would incur higher costs than the renovation and re-opening of Eastanollee Elementary. 

Staffing concerns were also addressed by Stith;

Stith finished his presentation talking about the topic of redistricting.

Franklin spoke to citizens about what the next steps in the consideration of the proposal would be.

Several Stephens County School principals spoke, and a total of nine citizens spoke following the presentation, with eight expressing full support of reopening of Eastanollee Elementary and restructuring the grade alignments, and the remaining speaker saying she supported restructuring as a parent, but acknowledged concerns about costs and other logistical challenges. 

WNEG News will provide audio files of these comments added to this article after they finish processing, later this evening (10/16)

The Stephens County BOE will meet in a called meeting on October 29, 2024, at 5:30 p.m. in the Tugaloo Center auditorium at Stephens County High School to consider any additional public comments and possibly vote on the proposed elementary school restructuring. 

More information, including the presentation from the October 15, 2024, meeting, and a public comment form are available on the School System’s website.  The deadline for submission of public comments at the link at the above address is 5 p.m. on October 25, 2024. These comments will be shared with the BOE members before the called meeting on October 29, 2024, at 5:30 p.m. in the Tugaloo Center auditorium at Stephens County High School. The public is welcome to attend.