JACKSON SCHOOL PROPOSAL TO VOTERS

JACKSON -- Dr. Howard Jones, superintendent of the Jackson School District, doesn't mind the challenge of building new schools or adding to existing ones. So the Jackson Board of Education Tuesday night agreed to submit a $7.8 million bond proposal to voters.

The board unanimously approved the proposal, which would pay for an addition at both the high school and North Elementary and construction of an elementary school. It will be placed on the Aug. 6 ballot.

"I'll put up with the challenge instead of a challenge of decline," Jones said. "There's new stuff popping up everywhere."

The proposal would cost a homeowner with a $70,000 house $26 a year in additional school taxes.

Even before Jones was hired as superintendent, the district knew a building project was necessary, said Marvin Adams, board president.

"When we hired him, he knew this was coming," Adams said. "It's a tribute to your schools that people want to move here so their children and grandchildren can attend."

With an enrollment increase of 350 students in about two years, the Jackson School District doesn't have enough space to accommodate all its students. And enrollment trends look to increase even more in the next few years.

With additional housing developments and retail growth in the county, the district likely will continue to grow, Jones said. The district covers a 550-square-mile area.

After a year of study, a community review team recommended an addition to the high school and North Elementary School and construction of an elementary building south of town.

The $7.8 million bond proposal includes estimated costs for all three projects, but part of the money would be reimbursed by the state.

Although the district is still using buildings that were built in the 1920s, they need to upgrade some.

"We're still getting benefits from those facilities," Jones said. "Schools are more than just facilities, but it helps to have good ones."

The district wants to improve its math and science classes by adding an addition at the high school that would create more classroom and laboratory space.

The 38,000-square foot addition also would allow the guidance counselors to expand their office by moving the principal's office to the addition. The estimated cost of the project would be $3.4 million.

An addition at North Elementary would cost an estimated $1.7 million but would include adding two classrooms per grade level.

While the new Middle School handled some of the growth at the junior high school, the elementary buildings didn't have much of an outlet.

A new south location would give the district an opportunity to provide for growth while accommodating current needs, Jones said. It would cost an estimated $3.4 million.

The building would also provide enough space for a districtwide all-day kindergarten program, but would take about two years to implement.

The board plans community forums for civic and church groups during the summer. For more information or to schedule a meeting, call the board at 243-9501.