Savannah-Chatham School Board passes Phase 1 of Long-Range Facilities Plan

Joseph Schwartzburt, Savannah Morning News
·1 min read
Savannah-Chatham Public School System board members including president Roger Moss raise their hands during the unanimous vote to pass Phase 1 of the Long-Range Facility's plan.
Savannah-Chatham Public School System board members including president Roger Moss raise their hands during the unanimous vote to pass Phase 1 of the Long-Range Facility's plan.

The Savannah-Chatham County Public School System (SCCPSS) Board unanimously voted to approve Phase 1 of district’s extensive, final version of the Long-Range Facilities Plan Phase 1. Discussion and the vote can be viewed at the SCCPSS YouTube channel link for the Regular meeting.

Iterations of the plan have appeared as slide decks during school board meetings and community town halls. The in-depth 67-page plan, which was only made available ahead of Wednesday’s board meeting, provides a school-by-school break down of the facilities plan’s Phase 1 implications.

SCCPSS Deputy Superintendent Bernadette Ball-Oliver (standing) presents a portion of Phase 1 of the Long-Range Facilities Plan alongside Superintendent Denise Watts, Ed.D. (center) and Deputy Superintendent of Elementary and K-8 schools, Troy Brown on Jan. 10, 2024.
SCCPSS Deputy Superintendent Bernadette Ball-Oliver (standing) presents a portion of Phase 1 of the Long-Range Facilities Plan alongside Superintendent Denise Watts, Ed.D. (center) and Deputy Superintendent of Elementary and K-8 schools, Troy Brown on Jan. 10, 2024.

Superintendent Denise Watts, Ed.D. gave a presentation on the key factors of the plan during the board’s Informal Session on Wednesday. Deputy Superintendent of Teaching and Learning Bernadette Ball-Oliver and Deputy Superintendent of Elementary and K-8 schools, Troy Brown accompanied Watts during the presentation.

The approval of the plan marks the end to a month’s-long debate among district leaders, board members and community stakeholders who took issue with the initial plan and subsequent revisions. District 7 Representative Michael Johnson had stated at December’s board meeting that he could not vote for the plan at that time. The board eventually decided not to vote on that plan at last month’s meeting.

At Wednesday's meeting, Johnson thanked district leaders and commended them on their ability to absorb community feedback to make revisions to the plan, which he felt he could support.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah’s former Groves-Mercer-Gould multi-site complex will shift to 6-12