BREAKING NEWS: Knox County School Superintendent Capital Plan Recommendation

Multiple sources have informed and confirmed that the Knox County Superintendent of Schools will scrap the Capital Plan recommendation that was presented on January 30, 2006, tonight 2/16/2006 in a 5:00 p.m. workshop meeting in the first floor conference room of the Andrew Johnson Building, located at 900 South Gay Street in downtown Knoxville.

The previous plan added permanent classrooms and students to 4 overcrowded elementary schools in West Knox County.

My sources indicate the superintendent's new recommendation that will be presented tonight includes;

Build a new West Knox County Elementary School to house 900 - 1000 students in FY 2007 (July 1, 2006)

Delay the Powell Middle School project one year.

Take the students from Gap Creek, New Hopewell and Bonny Kate (South Knox County) and relocate both schools to the current South Doyle High School Annex, there will be some dollars spent on renovation of the annex. Close South Knox Elementary School and move the students to Dogwood Elementary, thus placing Dogwood Elementary at capacity.

My thoughts on the issues. You didn't ask for it, but it's my blog and I will give it, if I want to.

I believe a new West Knox County elementary school is needed. Should it delay Powell Middle? No. Should New Hopewell and Gap Creek be combined? Yes. Should they be housed at the South Doyle Annex? No. When I served on the school board we purchased a large tract of land behind the existing New Hopewell with John Sevier Highway frontage. Why did the board purchase this land, if there was room at the South Doyle High School Annex?

The greatest travesty in any plan is to build a new Carter Elementary and/or Middle School on Strawberry Plains Pike. All Capital plan dollars should be built where the children are, there is minimal population growth in the Carter community. Gibbs Elementary should be built because of that community's growth. Corryton Elementary should be closed and the students absorbed into Gibbs and Ritta.

I will be posting in the future about the functional capacity study that the Knox County School district has just completed on the school districts high schools.

Have a great Thursday.