Local superintendents are making their way around their school districts, educating parents and residents about the upcoming penny sales-tax vote on Nov. 8. For Sandy Springs parents, the money would mean renovations, additions and a new elementary school.
Fulton County Schools Superintendent Robert Avossa made one of those stops on Oct. 17 when he visited the Sandy Springs Perimeter Chamber of Commerce for their regular breakfast.
The education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) is the renewal of a penny sales tax for school construction and in Fulton County it could fund $912 million in projects.
Information provided by the school system shows the system has hundreds of projects planned including renovations, technology upgrades and new schools. In Sandy Springs, Fulton County schools plans to build a new Heards Ferry Elementary School and increase capacity at Riverwood International Charter School, among other improvements.
“This district has done an amazing job over the last couple of years,” Avossa said. “We have $400 million in deferred maintenance. We’ve got all these beautiful buildings we’ve built and now we’ve got to maintain them.”
Avossa also told chamber members that the school district is “woefully behind on technology,” and part of the system’s plan includes $190 million for technology upgrades. The spending plans include wireless learning devices for students, online student assessment and regularly upgraded computers for teachers.
“I’m a little taken aback by the lack of sophistication I have in tracking performance in the district,” Avossa said of the current state of technology in Fulton County. “We don’t have that data infrastructure we need to track investments in talent.”
Jody Novotny, a Parent Teacher Association member at High Point Elementary in Sandy Springs, said she supports the tax. She said it’s important for voters to remember that they are deciding whether to renew an existing tax. It’s not a tax increase, she said.
“The public schools have more students every year,” Novotny said. “We need to make sure we have somewhere to put everybody. It pays for just maintenance of buses and all these things people don’t think about. It’s just really important money that makes our school system a better place.”
Whitney Lea, a parent at Ridgeview Charter School and High Point Elementary, said the vote is more crucial than other things on the Nov. 8 ballot.
“With three kids in public schools and overcrowding and the age of the schools, we definitely need it,” Lea said. “I think it’s much more important than Sunday liquor sales.”
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How will Fulton County schools spend your penny-sales tax money?
New Replacement Schools – $281.5 million
Land Banking – Future Sites – $20 million
Classroom Additions – $45.5 million
Renovations/Modifications – $251 million
Furniture and Equipment – $14.7 million
Safety and Security – $3.2 million
Technology – $190 million
Transportation – $38.5 million
Debt Services – $68 million
Total – $912 million
What will the sales tax money fund in Sandy Springs?
Riverwood International Charter School
– New addition increasing school capacity by 26 instructional units and site improvements.
– Major renovation and modification of existing building and site improvements.
Ridgeview Charter School
– Renovation and modification of existing buildings and site improvements.
Heards Ferry Elementary School
– New school of 54 instructional units and associated site improvements to replace existing elementary school facility.
High Point Elementary School
– Renovation and modification of existing buildings and site improvements.
North Springs High School
– Major renovation and modification of existing building and site improvements.
Sandy Springs Middle School
– Classroom addition increasing school capacity by twenty (20) instructional units.
– Renovation and modification of existing building.
Dunwoody Springs Elementary School
– Renovation and modification of existing building.
Spalding Drive Elementary School
– Major renovation and modification of existing building and site.
Woodland Elementary School
– Major renovation and modification of existing building and site improvements.
Source: Fulton County Schools
