Another

school construction vote next year seems likely, Fayette

County school officials said following the 52-48

percent defeat of a $90 million package last week, and

they are optimistic despite what some perceive as the

county's "anti-growth" disposition.

"Right

now, and it's been surprising, we're getting all kinds of

calls from citizens and community people that have

expressed an interest in helping us deal with the

decisions we're going to have to make," Dr. John

DeCotis, Fayette County school superintendent, said

Friday. "We're going to reassess where we are; we

have to look at our five-year plan, because this thing

(SPLOST) would have gotten us through the next five

years, and reassess what we may have to do that is

different."

When might

the next vote be? "My feeling, personally, is to

come back with something in a year," DeCotis said,

with another SPLOST or bond issue.

Fayette

County voters defeated a $90 million funding package for

schools based on a one cent sales tax and bond sale. It's

the second time, the first being in 1997, that a SPLOST

(special local option sales tax) was turned down.

With

students flooding the school system at a rate of about

1,000 per year, what effects will be seen, now that new

schools, classroom additions and upgraded technology and

security measures cannot be funded?

The most

tangible and immediate results of the SPLOST defeat is

the inability to proceed with rewiring schools and

updating aging technology, which was targeted for $1.2

the first year of SPLOST, and the lack of another million

for security devices, according to DeCotis.

Another

loss will be the $2.9 million in state growth funds to

build a new elementary school, and $4.5 million for a new

middle school. "For the elementary school, we won't

be able to make our local portion. We're going to have to

consider how to handle it. Right now, we don't have $5

million to apply to an elementary school," DeCotis

stated.

The next

foreseeable effect will be an increase in class size,

according to Fred Oliver, assistant superintendent.

"We still have limits," Oliver said, but he

admitted that under state guidelines, grades

kindergarten-3 could climb to 28 students and grades 4-12

to 33 students. What schools would be impacted the most

as the enrollment continues to climb? "Spring Hill,

Kedron, Booth, Brooks. I shudder to look at Tyrone."

DeCotis

predicted Fayette County High School and Starr's Mill

High School would also be impacted. Double sessions would

be considered as an option to ease overcrowding; other

possibilities include year-round school and additional

portable classrooms.

If the

district's enrollment builds up to the end of the year,

as it has in the past, DeCotis said, additional teachers

will not be hired this year. Other cutbacks could come in

teacher allotments, money teachers get to purchase

additional classroom resources.

But DeCotis

said money would not be pulled from the instructional

budget. For instance, the new math curriculum under

review for the next year, will not be affected. "We

set aside so much a year for a textbook adoption,"

DeCotis explained. "A school system could decide

that security is more important, but I don't feel that's

the appropriate thing to do," he said.

Does

DeCotis believe higher teacher-pupil ratios could affect

test scores and the level of education currently enjoyed

"Whenever

you have to tighten up and you do not provide the

citizens and the students what they have grown accustomed

to, there's going to be some effect on what's going on.

Whether or not it's going to measurable right away, or

whether or not we will be able to see the cause and

effect right away, I don't know. But we're going to try

our hardest and try to do the best we can with our

resources... we will certainly try our hardest," he

said.

According

to state department projections, DeCotis said Fayette

County will ultimately be home to more than 200,000

citizens, "and we're not even halfway there

yet," he said.

Many

people, including DeCotis, believe that the SPLOST was

defeated because of an anti-growth sentiment of the

voters. "Fayette County has grown fast, and a lot of

people want it to stay less developed," he said.

Looking

back to the bond issue of 1994, DeCotis said he asked

himself what would the school district be like today if

it had been unable to build Rising Starr, Starr's Mill,

Spring Hill Kedron, and Peeples, plus additions at

Huddleston, Braelinn, Burch, Tyrone, Hood , and Fayette

Elementary. "Now think, just think, if that didn't

pass, where would those children be?"

"We

would probably be in double sessions right now,"

Oliver said.

Even with

the prospect of another referendum looming in the next

year, DeCotis admitted that they will already be behind

and also be faced with a tacking on 3.5 percent extra to

whatever is planned, due to inflation.

Even if

some plans are cut, DeCotis said, "When you cut what

you're asking for, people come back and say you never

planned ahead. For example, if we come back with another

one (referendum) and it passes, we're going to be behind

and people will say we didn't build enough. But one cent

will only get you so much...."

In regard

to placing another SPLOST before the voters next year,

DeCotis was optimistic. He noted that there was a 20

point spread between the votes for and against two years

ago and only a two point spread this go round.

"Statistically, that's pretty significant," he

said.

Jim

Stephens, finance director for the school district

reinforced his belief in the SPLOST method of funding.

"It's

such a beautiful concept to me," he said. "You

avoid debt, you get the job done and you pay off the

bond, then it's over. You're not locked into 20

years," Stephens said, referring to a bond issue.

DeCotis

noted that he and the board will continue to accept the

unsolicited advice on what they should do from citizens.

"You get good ideas," DeCotis said. Some of the

more interesting ideas included wearing arm bands or

t-shirts the next time there's a referendum that

read," Ask me about SPLOST," imposing impact

fees on developers, which can't be legally done at this

time, and having the school board take on a business

partner to donate the necessary funds. "Sometimes

these ideas can develop into something we didn't think

of," DeCotis noted.

"We

have not brought everybody together yet," DeCotis

added, referring to school administration and the board,

"to brainstorm ideas on what we need to do. We'd

also like to involve some citizens on this."

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