The steering committee promoting the bond issue for a planned consolidated high school hosted one of several scheduled meetings throughout the county last Tuesday at the Mendenhall Armory.
Meetings are being held in communities around the county to help raise awareness and field questions concerning the bond that will be presented for a vote on March 29. A moderate crowd attended the meeting at Mendenhall, and every guest was given a slip of paper to write down questions throughout the presentation.
Steering committee chairman Ian Cowart said consolidation is “a done deal, and the best financing option for consolidation is a bond issue.” He added, “It’s time that we take Simpson County from being good to great.”
Superintendent of Education Dr. Toriano Holloway followed with initial information about the project.
Holloway said, “You deserve great schools, and that’s what we’re going to do no matter how uncomfortable that gets. Consolidation is great and it’s worked in many other communities.”
He highlighted other communities where he attests that consolidation has worked such as Winona and Starkville. He stated that those districts are moving forward, and their students have been provided with new opportunities thanks to consolidation.
Dr. Holloway explained that a bond is a way for a school district to borrow money to do projects. He said the money is taken out in a special separate tax that does not affect the operating budget of the school district. He said it is the best way for the community to fund the project because the extra tax goes away in 20 years. Dr. Holloway explained that the alternate route is to levy taxes which would stay on for a longer period.
“Your grandchildren, your great-grandchildren, and your grandchildren’s grandchildren will be paying those taxes. But If we do it (pass the bond) then we get everything we need and it goes away in 20 years,” Holloway said.
He stated that this is a generational opportunity for Simpson County to invest 61 million dollars into the school district and only cost the taxpayers 39 million.
Dr. Holloway said other improvements are being made. “We’re spending 10 million dollars in ESSER money on Simpson Central and if you haven’t been to Simpson Central they need it. We’re spending 2 million dollars on the fifth grade building at Mendenhall Elementary, and 2 million on Mendenhall High School so we can get Mendenhall Jr. High out of those conditions that they’re in.”
The Simpson Central project will be out for bids on March 28. Plans include a new concession stand, bathrooms, activity room, and eight new classrooms. The school will also be completely fenced in.
Holloway said, “That’s 10 million dollars that does not come from the city or county. That’s federal money. The other 51 million breaks down like this: 39 million is the bond issue that will pay for the academic building. That’s what the bond issue is for, the academic building. We have other sources within the district to do 12 million dollars or up to about 12 million to do athletics.”
According to Dr. Holloway, in the last five years 19 bond issues have passed in Mississippi, showing that other communities are investing in their school districts. He said the way Simpson County has been doing business the last 20 years is not working. “Giving Simpson County students a basic diploma with no other experience and sending them out into the world is a disservice.”
He emphasized that Simpson County students are competing with students from Madison, Northwest Rankin, and Pearl, and “our students are falling behind due to a lack of opportunities.”
Dr. Holloway said the county can offer more opportunities with a consolidated high school. He stated that Mendenhall High School is 57 years old and Magee High School is 62 years old and it is time to do something.
Dr. Holloway said, “Imperfect activity is better than perfect inactivity. We have to do something.”
He said if the bond issue fails then the School District plans to build a consolidated high school without athletic facilities.
Dr. Holloway pointed out if the school bond issue fails to pass then athletics would be hosted at existing facilities which would cost parents more money in the end. Football would be featured at Mendenhall’s facility and baseball would be featured at Magee’s facility. He used an example of a parent who lives in Mendenhall who has a child that plays baseball.
Dr. Holloway said, “Think about this, if you’re a parent in Mendenhall and your child plays baseball. Your taxes are going to go up anyway but on top of your taxes going up you’re going to have to drive down back and forth to pick them up from baseball practice. And by that time you will have spent way more than you would have if we would’ve just done the bond issue.”
He said the same was true for football players in Magee.
He explained that existing facilities will continue to be used by middle school and junior high students. Mendenhall Junior High will move into Mendenhall High and Magee Middle will move into Magee High.
Dr. Holloway spoke of the new curriculum and skills that will be available to students at the consolidated high school. He said students will be taught skills such as communication, critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, problem predicting, and creativity.
He said, “If we’re preparing our kids for jobs that exist today they’re already behind.”
Dr. Holloway said, “I’ve researched bond issues from 1975 until now, and out of the districts where there is a lot of economic growth and academic success they have passed more bond issues than we have attempted in Simpson County. Rankin County has passed 7 alone since 1975, we’ve passed one in 1980 for $975,000 and other than that we’ve kept out taxes pretty low.”
He said Simpson County has not made a significant investment in education since 1980 and it is time. With the consolidated high school students will be able to take advanced placement, art, theater, choir, ROTC, and dual enrollment courses, according to Holloway. He also said the district is working towards offering students four exit strategies to include, enrollment, employment, enlistment, and entrepreneurship.
Dr. Holloway shared a video of Gulfport High School to show what Simpson County is working towards. Students will work to complete academic core classes needed to graduate during the 9th and 10th grade. Afterwards they will take classes geared towards careers they may be interested in in the future. The video explained that Gulfport High has three institutes where students can get valuable career based experience. The institutes described in the video featured Health and Human Services (HHS), Science Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM), and Communications, Arts and Business (CAB). He showed another video with a similar curriculum for schools in Vicksburg.
Dr. Holloway stressed that if these programs were good enough for students in other parts of the state then why is it not good enough for Simpson County students. He reiterated that Simpson County students deserve the same opportunities.
He said, “We disagree on a lot and a lot of people may be upset, but no one has been able to tell me why this is not good enough for our kids. They deserve it.”
Dr. Holloway shared design plans for the new schools and sports facilities before closing. There are two designs for the school that can be voted on via the schoolboard website.
Assistant Superintendents Dr. Robert Sanders and Dr. Deirdre Randall also spoke briefly on the benefits of consolidation.
Dr. Randall stated there is an exorbitant amount of research showing a correlation between students’ performance and facilities. She said students in subpar facilities score between six and eleven percent below students in adequate and proper facilities. She said student attendance, teacher attendance, teacher retention, and discipline all improve in adequate facilities. Dr. Randall also shared information from a Duke study that showed a relationship between student performance and property value. She said for every one percent increase in student standardize test scores property value increases by $.52 per square foot. According to Dr. Randall a separate study by the National Economic Council revealed that every $1 a school district invested into facilities you see a $20 increase in property value. She closed saying there is an obvious link between student achievement and adequate facilities improving property value.
Dr. Sanders spoke of efficiency and security that comes with a new high school. He highlighted how the old high school buildings were built in a different era.
He said, “People were not trying to shoot children at school, so buildings were built in a way that were a part of the way life was back then.”
He shared an experience from his time as principal of Mendenhall High School when the school received a threat. Dr. Sanders stated there are 28 ways to penetrate Mendenhall High School, and it took him 28 minutes to lock down the campus. He explained the upgrades to security and infrastructure that are coming with the new high school. Also he mentioned that operations would become more efficient. Dr. Sanders shared that the district spends over $92,000 at Mendenhall High and $89,000 at Magee High on utilities each year. He compared that to the newest building in the school district Magee Elementary which spends $57,000 on utilities. He believes operationally this is the right thing to do.
Dr. Sanders said, “It’s time and we’re going to save money operationally I guarantee it.”
Director of finance Joanna Maddox explained millage rate and how the school bond would affect citizens. She said the school bond would be the equivalent of 11.02 mills and will only last 20 years. She also demonstrated how to use the tax calculator featured on the school districts website. She used a home valued at $160,000 and the calculator showed that taxes would raise $14.69 a month if the school bond issue passes. For 65 and above on a home of the same value it would increase by $7.81. Citizens can access the calculator to see how much their taxes will increase.
Following the close of the presentation Dr. Holloway fielded questions from the audience. A FAQ section is located on the school district website concerning the school bond.
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