ROANOKE TIMES Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times DATE: Saturday, April 6, 1996 TAG: 9604080019 SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
Although the bond issue for a new Cave Spring High School has been defeated, school officials must still develop a plan to enable Southwest Roanoke County ninth-graders to attend high school, Superintendent Deanna Gordon says.
The school system must offer the same grade alignment and instructional program in Southwest County as other areas in the county, she said.
There is no space for ninth-graders at Cave Spring High. About 410 Southwest County ninth-graders attend Cave Spring and Hidden Valley junior high schools.
Gordon said she favors the plan to study all of the county schools' needs before making a decision on the projects, but she is committed to getting ninth-graders into high school and implementing the middle school concept in Southwest County.
"We want to move ahead on this," she told the School Board Thursday night. "I need you to reaffirm publicly that this is your position."
Most board members said they agree with Gordon, but they didn't take a formal vote on the issue.
"We need to try to offer the same level of service everywhere. That is our challenge," said Board Chairman Jerry Canada, even though voters on Tuesday defeated a $37.2 million bond issue that included money for a new high school.
Windsor Hills member Tom Leggette said it is unfair for Southwest County students to be denied the same educational opportunities as their counterparts in the rest of Roanoke County.
"I tried my best to get the bond issue approved, and I will continue to push to see that Southwest County has the same [type of facilities and grade alignment as other areas]," said Michael Stovall, board member from Vinton.
One apparent option would be to expand Cave Spring High to accommodate ninth-graders. That would leave the junior highs with grades 6-8, the alignment for middle schools.
Canada said the county will have to try to create space for ninth-graders with existing buildings because "it is quite obvious we're not going to be building a new school soon - and probably never."
Before Tuesday's bond referendum defeat, architects and engineers said it would be difficult to expand the existing high school because of its design and location. The school is surrounded by a residential neighborhood. But officials considered expanding the school several years ago and are expected to look again at that possibility.
Gordon also said the science laboratories and related facilities at Cave Spring High need to be upgraded if the school is to be used on a long-term basis.
Canada said the board will seek proposals soon from consultants for making a study of all the county schools' needs before deciding on how to address the ninth-grade issue.
Canada said no decision has been made on what will happen to the proposed site for the new high school on Merriman Road near Penn Forest Elementary School. The land is adjacent to the county's Starkey Park. The 26-acre site could possibly be used by the Parks and Recreation Department, but that hasn't been determined, he said.
To help ease overcrowding at Cave Spring Junior, Gordon said, school officials are studying a possible change in the school's attendance boundary so some students can be shifted to Hidden Valley, which can accommodate more students.
Two years ago, school officials proposed a realignment of grades at the two schools to help ease overcrowding at Cave Spring. Under the plan, one school would have housed grades six and seven, and the other would have been home to grades eight and nine. The realignment would have been the first step toward the middle school concept in Southwest County.
But there was strong opposition to the proposal from parents who didn't want their children moved. Most parents thought the eighth and ninth grades would have been at Cave Spring, but school officials said no decision had been made.
School officials dropped the plan because of the opposition, but they are now considering changing the attendance boundary without realigning the grades. Gordon said the county will provide bus transportation to some rising sixth-graders who would be zoned to attend Cave Spring Junior but who volunteer to attend Hidden Valley. School officials also are considering other changes to shift some students from Cave Spring to Hidden Valley, she said.
LENGTH: Medium: 83 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshot) Gordon. color.by CNB