News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
DeKalb County Commissioners are split on deciding which schools in the DeKalb County School District need replaced.
Third District Commissioner Jenny Trapp says determining which projects to fund first has caused disagreement between commissioners and the district.
“There is a need for schools here. There’s no doubt about that. We needed them yesterday,” Trapp says. “It’s a big decision to start building schools and we have to look at what we want to build that’s going to benefit the county in the future.”
Fifth District Commissioner Anita Puckett serves as the Smithville Elementary Interim Principal. She says the school is in dire need of updating as it was built nearly 50 years ago with extensions added multiple times.
“We’re servicing about 580 students in this building and we are so overcrowded, that three of our classrooms for 2nd grade have to be held at our feeder school because we have no more space here,” Puckett says. “We’re definitely needing more space to accommodate our students and the educational means in which we have to provide.”
The district initially proposed a new K-2 on the Northside campus to replace Smithville Elementary. However, Trapp says buildings like DeKalb Middle School also face overcrowding issues.
“Their rooms are open-concept, so when you walk into them, every classroom is pretty much open to one another,” Trapp says. “The library is open plus several classrooms throughout. That was just what they had built at the time.”
First District Commissioner Dennis Slager says he supports the district’s current proposal and puts his trust in the school officials.
“I’m of the opinion that the school board is in a better position to make the decision on what exactly needs to be built,” Slager says. “They’ve done all the studies, they’ve been studying this for about a year and a half and, as a county commissioner, it’s not my job to dictate to them what gets to be built. It’s my job to fund the project. I have to think that those guys are better educated on the subject matter.”
Puckett says regardless of which school is replaced first, the commission and district need to create a plan for new schools across the county.
“There’s never been anything where we’re building new schools constantly and preparing for the future growth of DeKalb County,” Puckett says. “That’s something I’m definitely excited about and hoping the new board will be able to create so that we won’t get into the position that we’re in now, where our schools seem very neglected and just need new schools.”
The proposed project to replace Smithville Elementary is approximately $20 million with the district hoping to pay off that amount in about 10 years. The district is already planning a $40,000 feasibility study through its own money.
