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Published: Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009 / Updated: Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009 07:02 AM

Fort Mill may delay school's opening

Banks Trail Middle gets principal, reassignment plan

The Fort Mill school board on Monday gave the district's fourth middle school a name, a principal and several hundred students, all before announcing that the campus might open a year later than expected.

The board unanimously approved Superintendent Keith Callicutt's recommendation to move more than 600 students from their current schools to the new Banks Trail Middle School on Banks Road.

Opening the fourth middle school meant the board had to choose a new zoning plan for all district middle school students. Four options had been considered. On Monday night, they considered the so-called Option 3.1.

The option does not create a feeder school system for the district's two high schools.

Marty Connor, currently principal at Fort Mill Academy, will be principal at Banks Trail.

But when all that will happen is still up in the air.

The main reason to consider delaying the opening is cost, Callicutt told the board.

Successive cuts in state money for education are making it tough to manage, Callicutt said. The district has yet to announce how it will deal with a recently announced 4 percent cut in state funding.

Callicutt blamed much of the problem on a 2007 state law that exempted most homeowners from paying property taxes for school operations.

The law increased the sales tax by a penny, ostensibly to offset the property tax loss. But as the economy tanked and consumer spending slowed, school districts, especially those that are fast-growing like Fort Mill, saw sharp drops in revenue.

Putting off opening the fourth middle school could save the district considerable money, Callicutt told the board.

School officials plan to compare the costs of opening the school in August versus waiting a year.

Callicutt, in an interview after the meeting, said he also plans to look beyond finances and into how postponing would affect students and employees.

The middle school reassignment plan approved Monday would take effect in whatever year the school opens, he said.

The board may vote on the opening date in early December.

Alive at 25

School officials on Monday recommended that high school students who drive to campus be required first to enroll in the Alive at 25 driver safety course. If the board approves, the class would not be mandatory for all students.

Students would have to take it in order to get a parking pass. They would pay $35 to enroll, and the district would waive the $30 parking pass fee it now charges.

Representatives of other driving school programs asked that they be considered as an alternative to Alive at 25.

The board asked administrators to consider other programs.

Board members expect to vote on it later this month.

New officers

The board swore in new school board member Wayne Bouldin and returning member Michael Johnson. Both were elected Tuesday. Patrick White was elected chairman, replacing Jan Smiley, and Wyndie Havnaer as vice chairwoman.