Gordon Central $100K press box renovation approved
The Gordon County Board of Education recently approved a renovation project for the Gordon Central High School Ratner Stadium press box, a move that has been in the works since the latter part of last year.
Discussions at that time centered around the possibility of installing an entirely new press box at the stadium, however, bids submitted for that project in early November came in at $226,740, more than $42,000 over the amount set aside for it in the capital outlay budget. Superintendent Kimberly Fraker urged the board to “go back to the drawing board” and put out another bid for the project out at that time. The board agreed, opting to pursue a renovated or remodeled press box instead.
The new bid was awarded to Momon Construction for a renovation of the existing press box. The cost for the work comes in at $129,266
plus a 5% contingency in the amount of $6,463 for a total cost of $135,729.
Because $184,000 had originally been budgeted for the project, the board also agreed to a request from Gordon Central High School to pursue a request for proposals for a new sound system for the stadium. This would replace the current sound system, which Fraker described as aged with “a lot of speakers that aren’t working.”
Board member Eddie Hall praised the district for the work they did on lowering the cost of the project.
“I’d like to congratulate Dr. Fraker and her team for whittling this down. It’s still a big number, but it’s a smaller number too, and it’s going to maximize what we are able to give to our schools,” Hall said.
The board also approved an agreement for a new Student Assistance Program that will provide mental health assessments, referrals, therapy and support services to students at both Gordon County middle schools.
Services offered through the program include the availability of a 24-hour crisis hotline, short term counseling sessions, referrals for long term counseling as needed, intervention assistance, and more. All these services will be provided by personnel licensed or certified by the state or by personnel who are supervised by those qualified persons.
Fraker said these services would be free for students and that the program will be funded by “generous donors” who provide funds to the school to pay for services like these.
In other business, the board also:
♦ Heard a presentation from Director of School Nutrition Betsy Roam about ways the district is pursuing farm-to-school efforts in Gordon County;
♦ Approved an updated promotion and retention policy that authorizes each school to develop its own procedures and regulations about how state-adopted assessments and local promotion criteria will be used in decision-making concerning the promotion, placement or retention of students;
♦ Approved the 2020 Gordon County College and Career Academy Board of Directors; and
♦ Heard the first reading of an updated facilities naming policy that would allow facilities to be named after individuals still living.