News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
An Overton County Schools funding proposal has been put on hold to prioritize renovating the Livingston Academy Stadium.
The million dollar plan created by board member William Abston would pay for school improvements and class materials while also creating an in-house grant program.
School Board Chairman Jarman Hicks said with the fund balance possibly paying for the stadium project, the school system can not commit to the proposal.
“We will be seeking guidance from our county commission as to what they wish for us to go forward in that process,” Hicks said. “Without their guidance, we do not want to secure money from our fund balance and allot it somewhere else when we may need it for another project.”
Hicks said the proposal could still be approved depending on fund levels at the end of the year. Under the proposal, each school would receive $50,000 for improvements with Livingston Academy receiving $100,000. Hicks said these numbers are subject to change as maintenance needs increase.
“Our county commission, they recommend that we use some of our fund balance to start upgrading our schools and maintaining,” Hicks said. That is what we are looking into at this point.”
All classrooms would receive $1,500 to aid learning. Then, 50 $5,000 grants would be available for teachers to apply. Currently, the school system has $9 million in its fund balance. The proposed stadium renovations expected to cost about half of that.
