The

Air Force may provide a better hope of getting a

Reserve Officer Training Corps program into a

Fayette County school.

Junior ROTC program may be in place at Sandy

Creek High School within two years, according to

Stuart Bennett, an assistant superintendent with

the Fayette County School System.

Bennett

told the Board of Education Monday night that

after a "busy couple weeks," he has

gotten support from U.S. senators Max Cleland and

Paul Coverdell and U.S. Rep. Mac Collins to move

forward with a JROTC program. "They are all

willing to write letters, but I didn't get the

sense that it would speed it up," Bennett

said.

Fayette

schools are currently 230th on the U.S.

Department of Defense list for districts wishing

to initiate Army ROTC programs. Bennett said he

also is working to get in line for an Air Force

ROTC program after learning that the Air Force is

stepping up its number of ROTC participants.

"There are 44 ahead of us," Bennett

said.

Bennett

said that when the system finally receives a

contract offer, it will be necessary to hire an

instructor to prepare for the actual

implementation, about a year in advance.

Earlier

this month, the board balked at superintendent

Dr. John DeCotis' recommendation to hire a

part-time consultant to expedite the program.

"We felt we needed someone knowledgeable

about the program," DeCotis said. "They

[the government] don't give it to you all spelled

out." News of the situation prompted a

number of military officers to contact the school

board offering information and guidance.

Bennett

said the programs would be applied for Sandy

Creek High School because it has the necessary

room and drill space. He estimated about 3,000

square feet of classroom space would be necessary

to house a JROTC program.

In

other business, the board accepted a

recommendation from DeCotis to form a citizens'

overview committee to assist with management of

its special purpose local option sales tax if

voters approved the tax yesterday (after press

time), and to help with other timely issues if it

failed. Results of Tuesday's vote are available

on The Citizen's web page at

www.thecitizennews.com.

"I

believe it would be in our best interest to

support such an effort. This committee will keep

the citizens involved in our program and can give

us valuable support," DeCotis said.

The

board also heard a presentation from a

representative of Energy Education, a consulting

company that helps school district personnel

restructure their energy management habits. Glenn

Gaines, spokesman for the company, estimated the

school district could save $3.5 million over a

seven-year period with their "people

approach" plan.

"There

is some difference of opinion from the staff

about this," DeCotis said at the close of

the presentation. "But we thought it was

worth exploring. Any way we can save money, we're

willing to look at," he said.

The

board received copies of the curriculum guide to

accompany the newly adopted social studies texts

purchased last spring. Glenn Walker, social

studies coordinator for the district, said the

teacher-written guides "align what is being

taught to what is being tested. It's aligned to

the state curriculum and the ITBS (Iowa Test of

Basic Skills)," Walker said. He noted that

all teachers will use the same curriculum. Copies

of the social studies curriculum will be on

display at the school board office for public

perusal.

Finally,

the board:

� Set the 1999-2000 graduation

times for Sandy Creek at 6 p.m., McIntosh at 7

p.m. Fayette County at 8 p.m. and Starr's Mill at

7 p.m.

� Approved three candidates to

fill assistant principal slots: Marc Mickleboro

at McIntosh High School, Liz Grove at North

Fayette Elementary and Mike Duncan at Flat Rock

Middle.

� Learned the school district

has been accredited by the Georgia Accrediting

Commission Inc. with a top rating.

� Accepted a $5,000 gift from

Peachtree City for playground equipment at

Huddleston Elementary School.