Organizers hoping to force a proposed $13.2 million Oktibbeha County School District bond to the polls are expected to hit the required petition tally after county officials worked Monday night vetting signatures.
If more than 1,525 qualified residents of OCSD’s territory signed the petition, OCSD Conservator Margie Pulley will be unable to move forward with the bond without approval from 60 percent of the electorate within the school district.
Oktibbeha County Circuit Clerk Glenn Hamilton confirmed workers remained at the courthouse annex until at least 8 p.m. Monday and had confirmed that 1,032 of an estimated 1,800 signatures are from qualified electors who reside within OCSD’s territory.
Signature vetting continued this morning, and the petition was due at OCSD’s offices by noon. A final tally of signatures was unavailable at press time.
OCSD first filed a legal advertisement in December stating its intent to issue the bonds to construct a grades 6-7 partnership school at Mississippi State University ahead of July’s state-mandated merger with Starkville School District.
A majority of the funds — $10 million — would go toward the new construction, while the remainder is expected to purchase new buses and technology devices for OCSD students and teachers. This includes laptops for every teacher and smart boards for classrooms – devices already present within Starkville School District.
Although a local merger study group said about $20 million was needed for various construction projects and the Legislature last year approved the reverse referendum process for the bond, critics emerged in December and called OCSD’s late notice an underhanded move.
Residents, including former school superintendent Aubrey Ray and District 3 supervisor candidate Denny Daniels, went to work shortly after, collecting signatures to put the bond up for a vote.
An estimated 13-mill tax increase will follow if the bonds are approved
OCSD’s December legal filing appears to cap debt service at 20 years, but it does not explicitly chart out how long residents will pay for the bonds.
A call to Pulley’s office went unreturned Monday, but SSD Superintendent Lewis Holloway said an inability to find funds for construction could jeopardize consolidation’s effectiveness. For the merger to work, he said, residents within both school districts must help share the burden.
“The creation of the expanded Starkville-Oktibbeha School District represents an incredible opportunity for our community to become stronger while offering every child access to a quality education. To be successful, we must have adequate funding sources to deliver innovative and engaging instruction through dynamic teaching and technological support in classrooms and buildings that provide appropriate space for learning to occur,” Holloway said. “The cost of educating all children is a responsibility we share, and the tax burden should be equitable among all resident of Oktibbeha County.”
MSU unveils new partnership details
While local funding for the grades 6-7 school appears up in the air, Mississippi State University will donate $5 million and almost 43 acres of land toward construction of the joint university-consolidated system’s partnership school.
MSU’s announcement states officials will request another $10 million from the Legislature, on top of the $10 million sought from the local level.
The university will donate a 42.8-acre site, identified as the Longest Site, for the new facility, David Shaw, MSU’s vice president for research and economic development, confirmed. The site is located near the Highway 182 entrance into campus, across from the Thad Cochran Research, Technology and Economic Development Park.
Sketches released by the university show a proposed east-west road that will link the campus to George Perry Street and the highway.
If constructed, all grades 6-7 students within Oktibbeha County will attend the estimated 102,000-square-foot facility. Future enrollment there is estimated at about 900 students.
“Mississippi State University is committed to continuing our active role as a powerful force for growth and development in Starkville and Oktibbeha County,” said MSU President Mark Keenum in a release. “The vision of this proposed venture is one that will both improve student outcomes and elevate the teaching profession.”
State Rep. Gary Chism, R-Columbus, who sits on the House Education Committee, previously told The Dispatch that lawmakers are likely to open up the state’s public school building fund for the construction.
Monday, he said lawmakers are unlikely to give the university an additional $10 million specifically for the construction on top of usual funding requests.
“It could be attached with the money MSU is going to receive. I’m just afraid that when push comes to shove, MSU (officials are) going to say they don’t want to give up that money in order to build this demonstration school,” he said. “(Consolidation) is going to happen. Whether the new construction comes along? I don’t know.”
Carl Smith covers Starkville and Oktibbeha County for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter @StarkDispatch
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