Russellville board eyes big changes

Editor's note: See the correction posted at the end of this article.

RUSSELLVILLE, Mo. - The December meeting of the Russellville school board should yield definite changes coming for the school district.

The parent organization, which has been fundraising toward a $30,000 start-up cost for a school football program, has surpassed two-thirds of its goal, Superintendent Perry Gorrell said. If that goal can be met before the new year, the middle school program could begin soon.

At its regular meeting Thursday, the board accepted the bid as construction manager from the Jefferson City- and Sedalia-based company, Septagon.

At the December meeting, the board may approve the ballot language for a bond issue to be put before voters in April 2017. The proposal would maintain the current debt service levy at 95 cents per $100 assessed valuation.

A construction manager will allow the school to provide more accurate information to voters prior to that election, Gorrell said.

Septagon receives no money from the district unless the bond passes, he noted.

The next step will be for Septagon to meet with school officials to develop preliminary costs for identified projects and establish a timeline.

The five highest-priority projects include technology network improvements, elementary cafeteria renovation, elementary and high school bathroom remodeling, handicapped-accessible ramp at elementary and new HVAC at elementary.

After those, other projects on Gorrell's "facility planning list" include replacing the high school roof, replacing the high school HVAC, asphalt or concrete for the west high school parking lot and the elementary playground, an elementary canopy, security cameras and outdoor storage at the track facility.

"Facilities can be very easily go unnoticed," Gorrell said. "It's important to stay on top of those."

In other business, the board noted filing begins Dec. 13 for three seats on the board, currently filled by Rodney Edwards, Jamie Sullivan and Mark Schroeder.

Correction: The Russellville School Board of Education is considering a ballot proposal to maintain the current debt service levy at 95 cents per $100 assessed valuation to conduct facility improvements. The information was incorrect in the original version of this article but has since been corrected.