JASPER, Fla. — The new Hamilton County Elementary School may instead become part of a K-12 grade Hamilton County High School.

That was one option discussed in a special meeting Monday of the Hamilton County School Board.

During the meeting, the school board discussed the options for Florida House Bill 7060 and how that will affect them with the Turnaround Plan for the high school. The school board’s first plan was presented to the State Board of Education on July 17 and was denied.

“The house bill eliminated a two-year plan that we had,” Superintendent Rex Mitchell said. “When I came into office we had the ability to make a two-year plan if we did not make a C at the end of this year.

“We made a plan, we actually made three versions of that plan. June 15 the Governor signed this bill that totally eliminated that option for those two years. Basically it says here is the penalty, here is what you’ve got.”

Mitchell, along with board attorney James Willingham Jr., explained that there are now not two actual options available to the school, but a possible third.

The third option is that idea of combining the two schools to create a K-12 school, Willingham Jr. said.

Option one is to close the school and then open it back up as a charter school. Option two would reassign students to another school and monitor their progress.

“To compare what is happening is like having someone come in as a senior, and during their senior year going, ‘Oh and by the way we’ve got this Americanism vs. Communism course that is coming back and you’ve got to take it before you graduate,’” Mitchell explained. “That would be fine if the kid is in ninth grade, but the kid is already a senior at this point and it makes it difficult.”

Mitchell will have another meeting with the Chancellor of the Florida State Board of Education on Thursday to ask questions about the possibility of pursuing the option of changing the schools into a K-12 school.

There also could be another meeting with other school board attorneys to discuss possible lawsuits that other counties are creating.

Mitchell, Willingham, and the school board agreed to first see if the K-12 school option is possible. But if they can not get a definitive answer with facts backing it up they will be looking at either joining an ongoing lawsuit or creating their own to fight for their school.