It's time for school "?rationalization'
Ron Flanary / Commentary
Part One of Two
(I assume part 2 will be in later)
Now here you go, lots of the numbers are mentioned, the logic. The coal severence, everything.
It is with some trepidation that I offer these comments, as the subject of a long-term solution for Wise County's ancient high school infrastructure seems to attract passionate debate these days. Ultimately, these must be decisions of the head rather than the heart, but I will lead with some comments from my own heart.
I grew up in Appalachia, and graduated from high school there in 1966. My father, Joe Flanary, was the band director at Appalachia High School from 1953 until 1971. Every time the AHS "?fight song' is played, or the school's alma mater is sung, they're singing or playing his original compositions "? one of the few public schools anywhere that can claim original musical scores for these traditional numbers.
It was also growing up in Appalachia that I learned the importance of civic responsibility and other aspects of good citizenship. Years later, I was the first president of the Appalachia Athletic Association "? the volunteer group that conceived, planned, raised money for, and constructed the "Dog House"? at Riggs Stadium. Even though I've lived in Big Stone Gap for the last 30 years, my heart will always be in the community where I grew up and was educated "? Appalachia.
I was there when the high school at Appalachia was planned, constructed, and when it opened. It was simply beautiful, and when I finally got there as an eighth grader in 1961 "? its second year of operation "? the pride I felt was shared by the entire student body. The epicenter of AHS, as it should be for any institution of learning, was the library. I can recall the service of Dr. Miriam Morris Fuller as the school's librarian. Dr. Fuller later gained national prominence as an author and educator after her service at Appalachia.
I was flabbergasted to read that some Appalachia citizens had actually suggested the library be sacrificed in a misguided attempt to reduce rehabilitation costs at the school. This underscores the fact that common sense and reason have been lost. It has been sad to see my school deteriorate over the years "? and in fact, virtually all the high schools in the county. Over the long haul, generations of county leaders have neglected these schools, which is just one more reason their rescue today is not economically practical.
While I don't suggest I'm an expert in public education, before I began my career at LENOWISCO in 1975, I was a classroom teacher (at Keokee) for three years. I drove a school bus, worked bus duty, sold popcorn at basketball games and did my best to teach and inspire the young people entrusted to my care. In my estimation, there is no higher calling in this life than that of a teacher.
In my life, I believe I have paid my dues to my hometown, my alma mater and my county, and I have had exposure to public education as an "insider."? I thus offer these credentials of the "heart"? to supplement my comments from my "head."?
I earnestly believe the idea of renovating the six existing high schools in Wise County would be a serious mistake. It's a flight of fancy to think a school physical plant planned and constructed around 1950 Wise County demographic dispersion is relevant in 2007 and beyond. There is a heretofore silent, strong and growing undercurrent of thinking in the county "? among major taxpayers, professionals, businessmen, civic leaders and those not interested in nor involved in local political issues "? who realize it's time to step up and speak to this matter.
Wise County has reached critical mass on this issue, and the decisions made will be either a legacy of regret "? or a tribute to prudent and enlightened leadership for years to come. The concerned people of whom I speak are the people who do NOT usually show up at public expression time at the school board or board of supervisors "? those who frequently appear to express their rather biased and often selfishly motivated opinions. But different opinions are out there, and county leaders would be smart to find a way to listen to and fully consider those voices. In theory, the names of elected county leaders from this generation are being cast now on the bronze plaques that will be bolted to the walls in the entrance ways of the public schools of our future.
What would you wish to have your name attached to "? a crumbling edifice of poor thinking and preoccupation with past football glories, or a lasting endorsement to the supreme importance of giving our future generations the very best educational experience they deserve?
Having said this "? if county leaders would step back from the empty rhetoric of self-appointed spokespersons who attend every school board meeting to offer comments on everything from the color of the auditorium curtains to the type of wood in the gymnasium seats, a plan for three NEW county high schools could be accomplished with little, if any tax increase. That may not be the ultimate solution, but I'll throw it on the table for starters. Why shouldn't our young leaders of the future deserve world-class facilities, rather than expensively patched-up artifacts of the past?
Such an efficient and cost-effective plan would be achieved through operational savings, and reduced debt service on the capital financing for new schools, rather than expensive and wasteful renovation. Consider a side-by-side comparison (fewer brand-new schools vs. renovating the six old ones), since I know the numbers exist already and it's a virtual "no brainer"? from a cost-benefit standpoint. Since some county leaders tend to publicly choke on the word "consolidation,"? I'll suggest a new word: "rationalization."? If you had a fleet of six underutilized taxi cabs, all built in the 1950s, with rusted out bodies, gas-guzzling engines with multiple hundreds of miles of service, worn out interiors and outmoded technology, would you spend a small fortune to bring them up to current standards, or instead purchase three brand new automobiles offering the latest advances in efficiency, safety, comfort, technology and style?
The cost estimate of $110 million is, if anything, low. Having planned and managed hundreds of million of dollars in public infrastructure projects over the past 32 years, the plan to carry out such renovations during which school operations will continue will carry heavy financial penalties as contractors work around sequencing of work, safety and liability issues, and an inevitable list of change orders as designers and contractors uncover the hidden horrors of working with 50-year old structures. Doing the work at night would cost even more, I might add. It wouldnít surprise me if the ultimate price tag would rise to $150 million or more. This, my fellow citizens, would end up being a total fiscal disaster for this county. Comprehensive renovation of existing structures nearly always costs more than new construction. Any architect worthy of a state certification would confirm that fact.
I would further suggest the Board of Supervisors solicit and consider a PPEA (Public-Private Education Facilities and Infrastructure Act) proposal(s) from consortia of design/construction management firms. Since the county board and taxpayers must ultimately pay for the school plant, I would suggest using this approach as a means to encourage the school board to adopt this process as well. By the way "? PPEA does not offer "free"? design work as some have suggested. Nothing in this world is "free."? The design work is merely encapsulated in the overall proposal. However, there is, for sure, no obligation to pay for either a solicited or unsolicited PPEA offer (Note: It's not a requirement to solicit a proposal "? they can be unsolicited. There is a procedure for allowing others to submit before consideration, negotiation and acceptance or rejection of a given proposal. The county would be compelled to respond in any event.).
Therefore, no matter what Wise County officials choose to do, I would challenge business leaders in design and construction to step forward with such a plan for consideration and thus push this concept to the forefront. The normal public process to reach a logical decision is presently moribund.
As I noted when the Coalfield Progress called for a comment (which I hesitated to do, although LENOWISCO has, in the past, been asked by the county to offer fiscal-impact analyses on similar projects), the foolish $110 million approach would require (conservatively) a 70 percent increase in the property tax. You'll find that figure to be very close to reality. However, raising the tax rate by this amount is not going to happen. No politician in the world would support such a notion, since it would amount to political suicide.
The power plant at Virginia City will generate about $4 million in "new"? local tax revenue when it comes on line, as planned, and hoped for. However, because of the manner in which the composite index for school funding is structured (the total value of taxable property is a major factor in the formula, and the power plant would be valued at nearly $1 million), it will reduce school operational funding from the state. I should stress there will be a net increase in general fund revenue, however, not to mention the spin-off benefits of jobs, local investment, etc., so, it's still an enormous economic development and tax winner for Wise County. Prosperity has its downside in terms of feeding from the state's money bucket at the rate we're accustomed, so we cannot continue to have it both ways. In real terms, those taxpayers who carry most of the financial burden of Wise County schools live in Northern Virginia "? and one day soon they might decide they've had enough, and use their overwhelming political clout in the General Assembly to stop propping up poor rural school systems such as Wise County's.
All those out-of-county students who come to Wise County schools now (paying no tuition, I should add) contribute very little to the operational bottom line (660 total, 250 in high school). In fact, Wise County operates the equivalent of 1.5 high schools now for no logical reason at all "? "free"? education for non-payers.
While this props up the composite index funding (of which average daily membership is another factor), it requires a local county cash match of $1.1 million. For a homeowner in the county with a house and property valued on the tax rolls at $75,000, this means the school board is now spending about $70 of your tax money each year as a direct subsidy for non-paying neighbors in Russell, Scott, Dickenson, Lee or other surrounding jurisdictions.
Since the burden for capital cost rests exclusively on county taxpayers, this would mean the parents of these students in surrounding counties would pay nothing toward the cost of school renovation and/or new construction. That equates to more than $13 million using the current cost estimates presented to the school board "? all on the shoulders of Wise County taxpayers alone. Furthermore, by artificially propping up our school system in this manner, we only rob ourselves in our efforts to grow our local economy from within. No matter how you slice it, this practice fuels a downward spiral for Wise County and it's a poor example of informed public policy.
Take a look at the disparity of where property taxes are generated (and for this purpose, coal severance as an equalizer isn't relevant, since the rates are set by the Code of Virginia, and it's a county-wide source of revenue "? not related to districts at all.). As a citizen of District 3, using the school board's $110 million estimate, my neighbors in Big Stone Gap and I are going to be expected to share a disproportionate burden for the upgrade of Appalachia and Pound high schools, where property tax generation is considerably lower per capita, per household and in total dollars. District 3 probably generates three times the real estate tax that District 1 generates. Is that fair? That's one more reason those who are pushing those improvements
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