The Oglethorpe County Board of Education continued a discussion of outsourcing landscaping services during its Tuesday meeting.
“Each year, we do community input surveys,” Board Chair Becky Soto said. “We get some feedback that says, ‘Hey, the grass is always tall, or hey, this looks unkept.’”
College Pro Landscaping’s initial cut of the three campuses in the Oglethorpe County School System took 30 hours and cost a total of $4,050. That didn’t include edging, trimming and weed eating.
The board estimates that 26 weeks of cutting could cost $105,000 annually.
The school system has two workers who maintain the grounds of all the schools. The outsourcing would ease the workload on workers, but it remains uncertain how it would fit into the budget.
“We’ve got our two guys, and it’s overwhelming for them,” BOE member Jake Willcox said. “I truly don’t understand how they have done what they have done.”
Phillip Powell, the incoming superintendent, will be tasked with deciding if the budget the board has tentatively approved could absorb the landscaping cost.
Powell said he’s concerned about the look of the OCHS campus for graduation ceremonies on Friday, May 22.
“It’s important what our schools look like,” Soto said. “It adds to not only the kids and the community being proud of them, but the perception that visitors have.”
In other business, the BOE:
Oglethorpe County High School received a $50,000 innovation grant to have a Practical Assessment Exploration System (PAES) lab. The grant allows special needs students to learn real-world job skills in on-site training with the goal of preparing them to enter the workforce.
Announced that Richard Woods, the State School Superintendent, plans to visit Oglethorpe County Elementary School on May 13 to present the John Hancock Award. The award requires at least 90% of students to write their name in cursive.
Recognized Oglethorpe County High School’s FFA program as the state winner for the National Chapter Award. The program is led by Travis Sertich and Jordan Paul. “We have two of the best advisers in this state who pour into these kids,” Superintendent Beverley Levine said. “Our kids put in the hours, so for them to get state-level recognition, it’s just so nice to see their efforts being recognized.”
- Announced that Callie Bridges was named STAR in agribusiness at the FFA Convention last week. She owns Callie Bridges Custom Designs, where she creates custom floral arrangements.
Heard that the OCHS agriculture department is planning a trip to the Netherlands and Belgium from May 29-June 5, 2028, which will need to be approved.
Recognized Caden Berggren, Ledger Coley, Cole Faust and Landon Howard for finishing second in the state CDE in ag mechanics.
- Recognized OCES Science Olympiad top three finishers and their coaches: Miles Tucker and Harrison Ditty (first place, Barge Building); Adalynne Wilson and Catherine Yauck (first place, No Bones About It); Lucky and Waylon Miller (second place, Backyard Biologist); Lux Kuewa-Mokiao and Cayson Carlson (second place, Data Crunchers) and Catherine Yauck and Cayson Carlson (third place, Egg Drop).