14 APR 09: Tear Down This School
A big week begins today in Muscogee County Schools, as first through eighth-grade students take the exams known as CRCT's. Children had all last week off to rest and prepare - so they ought to do better than the Columbus Cottonmouths did in the playoffs.
The Muscogee County School Board began a busy week of its own Monday, with a special meeting and a work session. The biggest news was a decision to tear down Carver High School, and build a replacement. The decision comes five months before the school sales tax vote -- so education gambling is spreading like never before.
Muscogee County officials estimate a new Carver High School will cost $45 million, including a new auditorium. That nearly matches the cost of the Columbus Public Library on Macon Road -- so if Carver doesn't become a year-round school, a lot of taxpayers are going to feel cheated.
School district officials say the current Carver High is antiquated. A sewer line under the school cafeteria leaked last September. And on top of that, we're told the classrooms are too small. Hmmmm - are they really too small? Or are today's teenagers getting too big, due to obesity?
A new Carver High School is considered the top priority for a proposed one-percent school sales tax. But to "share the wealth," the tentative SPLOST list also includes 20 additional classrooms at Northside High. That new Northside auditorium will not be soiled by old-fashioned lectures on U.S. history.
The Muscogee County School Board decided to adjust the SPLOST proposal a bit Monday night. The language promising two new elementary schools was removed, because base realignment at Fort Benning might not require it. And we assume board members already have been told NOT to promise anyone a new park.
As it happens, the public forums on the proposed Muscogee County school sales tax resume Thursday night. Is it mere coincidence that none of the forums are at Carver High School? Or is it due to fear that too many adults in the old building might cause the floor's foundation to crumble?
The busy-ness for the school board continues today, with the first of two public hearings on becoming a "charter school." Not simply one charter school for Muscogee County - but making the entire district into a charter system. If only Charter Banks were still around, to handle the sales tax money....
School district officials explained Monday by becoming a charter system, Muscogee County could go around state rules and try different education ideas. Who knows - Dr. John Phillips might be hired as a top consultant.
The goal of charter schools is to try new approaches which might improve student learning. But Shaw High School Principal Jim Arnold may have raised eyebrows when he said there could be a change in "the way tests are administered." Open textbooks could lead to higher scores, you know.
BLOG CORRECTION: After further review, we have a reversal. It turns out Troy Bergeron DID play for the Columbus Lions last Saturday night in Harrisburg. In fact, he caught three passes and scored a touchdown. That's the chance I take when I'm in "Blog Overtime" - writing after 1:30 a.m.
-> If you missed Sunday's "Heads-Up Poker" action, check our thoughts about it at our other blog, "On the Flop!" <--
E-MAIL UPDATE: Several weekends of rough weather have one reader wondering....
I think the drive-in just north of Crawford (Field of screens) might need to show "twister" or "wipeout" for the Friday night speicals?
Welllll - maybe if they show one of those black-and-white grade-school films first, about how to hide under your desk.
If you really want to get ready for the next big storm, I recommend a trip to Peachtree Mall. It now has a "hurricane simulator" booth near FYE - where you drop in two dollars, and stand in 78-mile-per-hour wind gusts. It's perfect for the high school guy who wants to test his prom date's hair spray.
(All Peachtree Mall needs now is a tanning salon. Add that to the hurricane simulator and "Water Fingers" massage, and people won't need to vacation in Panama City Beach again.)
But seriously: the Monday evening news showed wind damage at Chattahoochee County High School - and revealed the county has no storm sirens at all. You'd think officials would have some sort of alert system worked out with Fort Benning. For instance, if a 21-gun salute goes on to 30 or 35....
Now let's see what else made news on Monday:
+ Michelin USA announced it will close the BF Goodrich tire plant in Opelika by the end of October. About 1,000 workers undoubtedly were stunned by the news -- and they'll be watching for the Michelin Man at Tires First on Milgen Road, but for a very different reason.
(Please show some sympathy for these workers. It would NOT be appropriate to walk up to them and say, "That's the way the ol' tire bounces.")
+ Richard Hyatt's web site reported the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has dropped veteran sports columnist Terence Moore. Moore was the Atlanta newspaper's equivalent of Kaffie Sledge - although if Moore's picture wasn't printed with every column, he probably would have been appreciated by more Caucasian readers.
+ The President of the University of Alabama spoke to area alumni at Green Island Country Club. The focus was on.... hey, wait a minute! Green Island?! In Columbus, not Phenix City?! Can't they renovate one of those abandoned supermarkets on the 280 Bypass into a nice banquet hall?
+ Instant Message to Hamilton Ace Hardware on Veterans Parkway: You're kidding, right? I mean, your sign - offering a free T-shirt with the purchase of pants. Did that get blown down the road from a boutique on Bradley Park Drive?
COMING SOON: Fifty dollars, simply to watch television....
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