During the most recent meeting of the Cherokee County Board of Education, board members met with officials from Ra-Lin Construction and McKee & Associates to get a broader idea in terms of where the board needs to go as it relates to their Capital Plan for each campus in Cherokee County.

Sewell McKee with McKee & Associates explained the ‘master plan’ in detail –

Board Chairman Brian Jennings said that the board has been provided a full copy of the plan which can be viewed on our website at weisradio.com.

The topic of the Capital Plan was followed by a conversation concerning Teacher Units–

According to Jennings the main reason the board included the Capital Plan with the discussion of Teacher Units is because both cost a substantial amount of money and the board needs to closely look at how each will affect the capital debt line. Jennings said that he does not want the board to have to make a decision on one at the expense of the other but rather find a common ground where the board can provide the best educational experience for students in the classroom while insuring that they are doing so in buildings that are safe and conducive to learning.

Jennings went onto say “I believe this Board has a fiduciary responsibility not only in terms of money, but in terms of the minds we are charged with educating. We can’t compromise our ability to do the latter by incurring an over loaded debt service in the former.”

Over the next several weeks the board must now look carefully at the Capital Plan and take into consideration the concerns, questions and issues addressed by several teachers and administrators present at the meeting and make a decision on what the best options are in terms of long-term planning for the school system as it relates to infrastructure and also teacher units.

We have provided audio of the presentation from Ra-Lin Construction and McKee & Associates along with photos from the slideshow presentation below.