MOULTRIE, Ga. — C.A. Gray Junior High School isn’t going anywhere, at least not for a long while.

A debate began in February after architects Altman + Barrett proposed either moving the school across the street from Colquitt County High School or demolishing part of it and constructing a new building on the current site.

The board of education announced Monday night that neither of those things is going to happen due to new guidelines from the state.

In its Monday night board meeting, the BoE announced that construction at Charlie A. Gray Junior High School will be ineligible for total state funding, according to Superintendent Ben Wiggins. 

“Due to changes in the Ga. Department of Education guidelines the decision of moving or replacing C.A. Gray has to be on hold,” Wiggins told the board. 

The new guidelines will make C.A. Gray ineligible for total state funding to replace the buildings because four of the 15 buildings have not reached the age of replacement yet and will not reach that age until approximately 2027, according to a Tuesday press release from the district.

“For this reason, the (BoE) will move on to the next identified priorities in the facilities reviews process and work on a plan to address those areas of need at this time,” the release stated. 

It said the board will continue to look at plans for a new C.A. Gray as it contemplates the next Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax in order to receive the full state funding.

The board originally hired architectural firm Altman + Barrett to identify improvements for the district. They first announced their proposals in the Jan. 31 BoE meeting. Since then multiple public meetings and forums have taken place to discuss the proposals. The proposals include:

• An entire replacement or relocation of C.A. Gray.
• Demolitions and other minor renovations at Willie J. Williams Middle School.
• A complete replacement of Norman Park Elementary School.

While neither Willie J. or Norman Park Elementary were discussed at Monday night’s board meeting Wiggins did say the board will continue to work with the architectural firm to improve the facilities throughout the district.

Other actions taken by the board

The board approved a bonus payment for teachers throughout the district to coincide with the passing of Ga. House Bill 190. The district will be supplementing a bonus for grades K through 12 teachers, according to CCSD chief financial officer Jeremy Jones in his financial report during the board’s work session.

While the amount was not specifically discussed, Jones did promise the bonuses to be included in the teacher’s April 29 paycheck. 

The board also approved two field trips for the Special Olympics Colquitt County to attend the May Summer Games in Atlanta and the Program for Exceptional Children to attend the Community Sound Conference in North Carolina in May.

Other items

• The board honored members of the Okapilco Elementary School for raising more than $10,000 in conjunction with the United Way of Colquitt County. 

• Jones presented possible future expenses for the board to consider which include the repair or replacement of public address systems throughout four schools and Mack Tharpe stadium. Williams Middle School and R. B. Wright Elementary School will require repairs to the PA systems while the stadium, Hamilton Elementary School and Norman Park Elementary School will require full replacements. 

• The board also discussed filing an insurance claim regarding damage done to Sunset Elementary School during Spring Break when it was struck by lightning.  No actions were taken but will “more than likely” be considered in the next board meeting regarding these issues, according to Jones.