Document SSVC final report View

Signal Mountain's School System Viability Committee has finally completed its final report for the Signal Mountain Town Council.

The 48-page document, currently available to the public through the town's website, details the SSVC's methodology and findings, with most committee members ultimately concluding that a separate school district would be viable so long as the town was able to overcome three obstacles.

Those obstacles are: 1, the issue of control of the town's three school buildings, which committee members state will likely have to be resolved through negotiation or litigation between the town and the Hamilton County Department of Education; 2, the inclusion of Walden and the unincorporated area of Hamilton County in the decision-making process, governance and funding obligation for a new district; and 3, the question of how Signal Mountain would be required to contribute to the school district financially — for which the report offers a number of possible approaches.

Also included in the document was an addendum written by SSVC member Charles Spencer, the only representative on the committee to vote against approving the final report.

In his dissenting report, Spencer argued that there were several risks that the committee had not taken into account. He said his goal was "simply to provide additional areas for our town council to consider."

Document SSVC survey results View

Document Signal School District budget letter View

Among his list of potential risks, Spencer included the financial consequences of lawsuits to the town should legal action be required to obtain the school buildings, and the risk of an independent school district having insufficient resources to deal with unforeseen problems that may arise.

In regards to the fact-finding process itself, Spencer criticized the committee for not consulting with more professionals, who he said were willing to brief the committee at no cost, as well as for beginning the investigation with a preconceived conclusion as opposed to starting with a "clean slate," which he said could have injected unintentional bias into the study.

The six other members of the committee responded to Spencer's dissent with an additional addendum reiterating their adhesion to facts and research while compiling the budget, and defending the final report from Spencer's specific criticisms with additional information about the process and data already in the report.

All in all, SSVC Chair John Friedl said he was confident in the validity of the final report, which he said illustrates that creating an independent school district would increase the quality of education for children enrolled.

He said the report's carefully vetted budget shows the school district would have approximately $1.9 million to devote to educational enhancements, after paying salaries and other necessary costs.

As outlined in the report, contributions from the Mountain Education Foundation and supply fees paid by parents add approximately $650,000 to the current operating budget of the town's three schools. During the 2015-2016 school year alone, those funds resulted in a long list of services and materials available to the students that were deemed important to education quality.

Among that list are entries such as reading intervention teachers at Nolan and Thrasher elementaries, a full-time college adviser at Signal Mountain Middle/High, professional development enhancement for teachers, and need-based scholarships and support for the IB program, to name a few.

Friedl noted that the amount MEF has been able to raise has decreased in recent years, pointing to a natural decline of the initial excitement the foundation saw from donors when created in the early 1990s as a possible cause for the drop-off.

With the $1.9 million surplus, which is more than double the $650,000 from outside sources, Friedl continued, an independent school district would not only be able to make the current list of enhancements permanent, but also fund new enhancements. Those improvements could include some of the suggestions outlined by the 738 respondents of the quality survey taken by parents, teachers and community members earlier this year, which is also broken down in the SSVC's final report.

Mayor Chris Howley said improving quality will be the primary focus for town council members as they review the report and decide on the next step.

"That has to be the focus," Howley said. "If it's not the focus, then we're not targeting the right things."

The SSVC will formally present their report to the public during a meeting in the gym at Signal Mountain Town Hall Oct. 18 at 7 p.m. Council members will be able to ask follow-up questions but the floor will not be open for public comment.

The town council will begin its discussion of the report and related next steps during a work session Friday, Oct. 20 at 1 p.m.