Friday, February 13, 2015
Commissioner Jackson Statement On Portable Classrooms
Statement from County Commissioner Chris Jackson regarding the recent decision to remove students throughout the county from all portable classrooms:
"While removing all students from portables is definitely the correct solution for the short term, it does have serious repercussions as many students will now be housed in areas such as libraries and gyms that are not conducive to learning. For years, our county has done the bare minimum on important issues like education, instead of addressing them in a responsible long term manner. This short sightedness has caused our county to have to readdress the same problems every 5-10 years. This must cycle stop.
In the coming months, the county and school board will work together to produce a long term plan that will comprehensively address school overcrowding and the issue of education equity. Support from the public will be crucial in seeing this plan become a reality. In 2008, a plan was put forward and passed that would have removed every portable in Lawrence County and built permanent classrooms. These improvements would have been paid for by a $25 increase in the wheel tax. However, when taken to referendum, it was defeated 65% to 35%.
If we truly value education in Lawrence County, we must be willing to pay to improve it. We can't just keep "making do with what we have" and realistically expect us to be competitive in the future. While these improvements may cost us more in the short term, they represent an investment in our future that will have a great return for our county in the long run."
Commissioner Chris D. Jackson
Chairman of the School Board Liaison Committee
