This is a recurring list of the questions asked during previously held Public Forum sessions.

What is the total project budget

The total project budget is $51 million – $39 million for the academic building and $12 million for athletics and a possible performing arts building.

How much is allocated to sports, academic buildings, athletic projects (per sport), extracurricular buildings, and infrastructures?

Twelve million dollars is the estimate for the athletic facilities. Infrastructure costs are included in the estimates for both projects.

How will it be funded by bond vs. county/state funds?

There will be multiple funding sources depending on the outcome of the bond issue. If the bond issue passes, the athletic facility will be funded by multiple sources from district funds (i.e., 16th section funds, fund balance, refinanced notes).

Why was the 16th Section Land not used for a building site?

There was not a viable piece of 16th section land to accommodate the school site without adding significant costs to the project. The district evaluated several different pieces of land before finalizing the decision to purchase the property on Highway 49.

How have other schools that have consolidated in past years improved with their ratings?

There have been several to consolidate, but due to COVID, it has been difficult to determine which have improved their ratings. However, those who have consolidated have been able to offer students academic and extra-curricular opportunities they did not have prior to consolidation.

Who owns the land where the school is going? How much was paid per acre?

Phillip Davis owned the property. By law, the district has to acquire two appraisals and pay the average of the two appraisals. The average was approximately $5,200 per acre.

Why didn’t we use the 16th Section Land that the school already owns?

There was not a viable piece of 16th section land to accommodate the school site without adding significant costs to the project. The district evaluated several different pieces of land before finalizing the decision to purchase the property on Highway 49.

If the Bond Issue is voted in, how do we know taxes will still not be raised?

The district has not raised taxes since 2013, prior to requesting the bond issue. We have been making cuts and moving to a zero-based budget to utilize our current allocation.

How will behavior issues be addressed the first year? When putting two rival schools together, I would expect more behavior problems the first year.

Traditionally, you do not have problems with students when consolidating. The adults are more of a problem than the students. None of the districts I have spoken with have had problems with students after consolidating.

What is the typical usable lifespan of a school building? The new building?

Typically, you can count on getting at least 50 years out of a brand new building. If you develop an effective maintenance plan, it can last longer.

Will the site be on the bond ballot?

School sites are the responsibility of the school board, so it will not be on the ballot. The site that was purchased will be the official location of the high school, even if the bond issue does not pass.

What about insurance after the bond passes?

It is hard to determine the impact on insurance right now.  We will add a facility, but we will be dropping coverage on the building that houses Mendenhall Junior High School.

Will our teachers be paid a competitive salary?

We hope the State of Mississippi will give our teachers a pay raise. At this point, there is no discussion to raise the local supplement we give teachers.

What will be our relationship with Co-Lin?

We are planning on expanding our relationship with Co-Lin. Currently, less than 20% of our students take advantage of Co-Lin.

If adding more programs, where will the teachers come from?

We will utilize our existing teaching staff. The career academies may require a few more teaching slots, but there will be a significant amount of professional development required for our high school teachers.

The current buildings have deferred maintenance for years and years. What assurance do we have that this building won’t fall into the same state of disrepair?

At the end of the construction projects, we will develop a five-year maintenance plan geared toward maintaining our facilities. Previously, there has not been a plan in place, but we will put one together so we can budget to maintain our buildings.

What new classes (Advanced-Classes) will be available to students?

It will depend on their interests.  We will definitely add AP English, AP US History and a few others.

What colleges will Simpson County School District partner with for dual enrollment besides Co-Lin?

Co-Lin will be the main partner; and depending on what we are able to offer with them, we may look for another college.

Will the school board commit to introducing your architect to design a “board points” building without any expensive materials or unnecessary embellishments such as grand entrances that have no practical values?

We decide what the building will look like, not the architects.  If there are things we want cut from the building to lower costs, they will be cut. The board and district administration have the final say; not the architect.

If school enrollment is declining, why do we need a new consolidated high school?

We need a new facility to educate the students who are here and need more opportunities. We need better facilities and it’s time.

If the new school project runs over budget, as it almost certainly will, what is your plan to reduce the cost to keep it under budget? And what is your plan to handle unforeseen costs resulting in change orders?

The board and district administration have to approve change orders, not the architect. You can do certain aspects of the projects as bid alternates, so you can choose to do them, or not, depending on the bids. Architects don’t control the budget.

If you spend the education money on new buildings, where will you get the money to hire more math teachers?

We will combine the current teaching staff from both schools. The bond money will come from a special tax; it will not affect our operating budget.

If the bond does not pass, will it be the same amount of money to include the sports facilities?

If the bond issue doesn’t pass, we will still generate the funds needed through several tax increases. The school cost will still be $39 million.

Explain more about “its coming” – post-COVID, the state legislation will be requiring consolidation. Which legislation is going to support and drive this? What bills have been drafted the past five years?

There was no guarantee that the legislature would require consolidation; it was a guess based on their past actions. Prior to COVID, they made several districts consolidate, and they will probably look to make others consolidate at some point.

Any statistics on dropout rates (high school) of new facilities compared to old facilities?

We did not research dropout rates and new facilities.

Would it not appear that consulting firms, PR firms and architects will be the real winners in all this and the losers will be the taxpayers, their children and grandchildren – The Future Taxpayers

The real winners will be the students who get to attend a state-of-the-art facility and receive an education that prepares them for future careers.  Those groups will make profits but so will our students. The school district will improve almost every facility in the district at the end of this bond issue. Our community will benefit.

Why were there not public meetings held previous to the school board’s decision to spend $61 million? Why did you not get input from the taxpayers first?

The law requires the school board to make decisions on the budget. We received $10 million in ESSER funds that had to be spent quickly. There are budget hearings every year.

Does the school board not effectively have dictatorship over the taxpayers of the county by virtue of the power to go to the board of supervisors for all this future desired funding?

State law gives the school board authority to request funds to operate school districts.

Seems to overlay with each county. How does it fit in? Can you STAFF this facility with qualified people?

Yes, we have qualified teachers at each high school right now. They will be combined to make up a majority of the staff at the new high school.

What changes will be made to Mendenhall HS if other students will be moved to it? 20+ access points per Dr. Sanders?

We will be replacing window AC units, upgrading windows and other improvements.  When the bids go out for the construction of the new cafeteria, we included fencing in the whole campus as a bid alternate. If the bid comes in low enough, we will add while they are building the new cafeteria. If not, we will budget for it over the next year or two.

Has the Tax Impact calculator been validated by the Simpson Co. Tax assessors? How are they going to stand by the calculator results?

They saw the calculator.  We did not ask them to validate it. The tax calculator gives approximates, not definite values. It was developed by a group that has worked with municipalities and school districts on bonds and other financial issues for 30 years.

In construction, how are costs being controlled? Why is a non-local company doing a survey? Local companies will usually cost less.

We have a contract with the architect, and they provide those services. We have referred some local companies to them. Costs will be controlled by the district administration and the school board. We have final approval on all construction decisions; not the architect.

Last week in Magee, when the question was asked, “If public school enrollment is declining, why do we need to build  more buildings?”, we were told, “If we build it, they will come back.” From where do you expect them to come?

There are enrollment increases when you build new facilities. If they come, we will be prepared to serve them. Our concern is educating the students who are here right now. They deserve better.

Where will the basketball games be played? Just concerned because both facilities are not in the best shape.

We have not decided which gym yet.

Timeframe for completion? Will the track open to the public? Families with wheelchairs want their children in the best schools.

We hope it will take 18 to 22 months when bids are opened and approved. The track will be open to the public when students are not on it.

What are plans to address the potential need for additional staff (counselors) to help students navigate through the academic requirements for a chosen track?

We will combine the current staff members and provide them with training. The teachers will also be trained on how the career academies work so they can advise students through informal conversations.

What are plans to address the emotional or mental health of our students suffering from the impact of Covid-19 (family loss)?

We have not developed one yet. This is a great question, and we will work on it soon.

Do you think our low mileage rate has contributed to our facilities today?

Yes, the low millage rate has definitely contributed to our old facilities. You have to generate funds and budget for maintaining facilities. We have not done that in the past.

Has the superintendent and the board considered that consolidation will deny 50% of Simpson County athletes opportunity to participate

It will not deny 50%. There are currently students who are not getting to participate in both schools. There will be other opportunities for students to engage and connect with school. Athletics are important, but they are not the main reason we are consolidating the high schools. We are going to provide our students with more educational opportunities. That is why we are consolidating the schools.

In your robot presentation, you showed a semi-automatic machine. How long does it take to learn to operate one of those?

The video was used to illustrate where the world is going in the future. We need to prepare our students for future jobs.

Our kids are not passing the basics. Yes, the world is going to technology as the video showed, but that requires math and science. Our kids are scoring below the MS average → 80% below MS average in math and 69% in science. How exactly is a building going to prepare them for technology and academy changes?

I am not familiar with these statistics, but a state test does not show you everything about a student’s potential. Yes, we have been below the state average in some areas, and that is why we need to do something different than what we have been doing.

How can this be called a Public Forum if we are not allowed to speak?

To ensure all questions are asked and answered in an orderly fashion, we ask that questions be written down. We also add your questions to our website, so you and others can refer to the questions and responses at your convenience.

Has anyone calculated the projected cost to renters in this county, resulting from a bond issue or raising of taxes

Renters are not directly impacted by tax increases. The owner of the property may raise rent to cover taxes, but I can’t speak to what every landlord will do with their property.