The Joint Capital/Facilities Committee – a body consisting of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners and Guilford County Board of Education – has scheduled a meeting for Tuesday, Jan. 28, and it should be a very interesting one indeed.
In the last four years, Guilford County voters have approved $2 billion in school bond money, which the commissioners have been shoveling over to the school system. Yet something is going wrong somewhere because – just to take the highest profile example, Page High School – which was supposed to get a complete rebuild but now is only slated for repairs – missed school days earlier this month because the school’s heating and air conditioning broke down and took a long time to fix.
When the school board came under fire from a very displeased group of parents and students who showed up in numbers at a January Board of Education meeting, some school board members pointed the finger of blame at the county commissioners and told the people to speak to the commissioners about the problem.
At the Board of Education meeting, School Board Member David Coates said: “I hope that the Page people show up at the county meetings and let them know what’s going on. I’d like to say the buck stops here, but it doesn’t entirely.”
School Board Member T. Dianne Bellamy Small said, “I hope staff will work with us, based on what Mr. Coates just said, to jointly advocate to our county commissioners to get off the money.”
Guilford County Commissioners were of course very displeased since the commissioners have, again, been absolutely shoveling money to the school system, and the problems with heating and air at Page have nothing to do with the commissioners.
After school officials encouraged those who were upset to go to the Guilford County Board of Commissioners meeting, which a large group of them did on Thursday, Jan. 9, the last meeting of the Board of Commissioners.
The coming joint meeting will take place at 3 p.m. at the former Truist Building at 201 W. Market St. in downtown Greensboro.
The discussion will no doubt focus on the use of the current $2 billion in bond money, but there may be more school bond money on the horizon and perhaps school board members will bring up the needs that can’t be met by the current $2 billion in funding.
Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston said this week that, even though the county has passed bond referendums totaling $2 billion for Guilford County Schools’ capital projects and repairs in the last four years, it’s very likely a new round of school bonds will be needed in the next two or three years.
Page High School isn’t alone: A lot of other major planned school projects got sliced off as well, making many parents and students very dismayed.
Alston said the facilities study was done a half dozen years ago and the increased price of construction materials and labor after the schools’ needs study was conducted meant that many of the hoped-for projects included in the $2 billion could no longer be undertaken.
Therefore, he said, another round of bond money may be needed.
Those who wish to watch the Jan. 28 meeting of the two boards can do so on Zoom by going to https://www.zoomgov.com/j/1613174016, completing the webinar registration, selecting the option to join from the confirmation email prior to the meeting start and choosing one of the following audio options: (1) Use your computer, tablet or smartphone’s speaker or (2) Select “Use Telephone” after joining the webinar, call (646) 828-7666 and entering the webinar ID 161 317 4016, if asked to do so.
This ” joint meeting” will continue to show case the monkeys running the zoo. Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result just doesn’t work. Registered voters, wake up.
The funding problem is on the School Board. They make the decisions on funds use.
I would like to see a list of the projects from the last bond funding package; the original cost estimate of each; those projects completed and the actual cost of each; and the projects removed from the list.
Chuck, I agree with what you say about the decisions on funds but my view is if the Commissa…I mean Commissioners know this is happening why keep giving them the money
They need to discuss having an SRO in every Guilford County School every hour that they are open. I hear there are days where Deputies are in Training or sick or take vacation and the school is not protected. This can’t happen. There needs to be additional Deputies who are trained can fill in like substitute teachers. This lack of coverage is a disaster waiting to happen and the current Sheriff has no leadership skills. He can dance on the streets during parades though.
Guilford County Schools (GCS) has reached the point where a state audit should be conducted of how the Democrat run school board is allocating money for one of the largest bond approvals in the USA at $2 billion. One HVAC Tech is on staff to handle over 100 schools presently. Yes, that is correct…..only one with two assistants. GCS uses HVAC contractors instead. What is this costing the tax payer? Remember, interest rates on those bonds have exploded well above the earlier estimated 2.5% rates. How much is being spent with these contractors? The safety of the children and teachers is also being drawn into question. They are wanting even more bond money to be forked over by the tax payer, but will this put Guilford County in a financially dangerous position for the next 20 or 30 years as one of the lower family household income of larger counties in NC with an aging population moving toward fixed family incomes? One in three GCS students are chronically absent. Test scores are in the 40’s percent range. The GCS student population is shrinking with decreasing K-12 population and more parents choosing Private, charter, home schooling. A state audit is needed.
There seems to have been a rash of physical plant failures and oopsies of late in public facilities. Maybe the new approach to governing without ‘participation trophy’ jobs for people unfit for the work, will bring some results for the good. The so called politicians we have here now are mostly inept blabber-mouths.
“Alston said the facilities study was done a half dozen years ago and the increased price of construction materials and labor after the schools’ needs study was conducted meant that many of the hoped-for projects included in the $2 billion could no longer be undertaken.”
Hold on to your wallet. . . .the school system wants more money. . . . .yet they haven’t done anything to reduce the cost of government. Wonder if the school system and county commissioners are going to stop their out of state meetings and conferences? I doubt it. . . .they love the attention and free room and board.
If Page High school is not getting a complete rebuild, that’s because the School Board and Skip Alston along with Guilford County school superintendent, Whitney Oakley, are too concerned about their vanity school project at Boylston Rd and S. Bunker Hill Rd. However, don’t overlook the City of High Point. High Point is in on the vanity project. Rather than making the existing schools better, such as Page, the school board, Skip Alston, and Whitney Oakley want to spend bond money on a new school that is neither needed nor wanted just for their own vanity to point to the new school as a symbol of what a great job Alston, Oakley, the school board, and High Point are doing. These same people are leaving the students in Greensboro high and dry by design. If I were a parent of a Page High School student or any other school being shortchanged by the vanity school at Boylston and S. Bunker Hill Road, I would be demanding that the money be spent on existing schools rather than building an unneeded, unwanted vanity school to make Skip Alston, Deena Hayes-Greene and all Guilford County School Board members, Whitney Oakley, and the City of High Point puff out their chests and say “look at what we have done.” But the bigger question is, ‘who did you unnecessarily leave behind?” And you know the answer to that question.
They need to be discussing DEI.
Ok folks,
Is Guilford County Schools, Guilford County government, City of Greensboro, and City of High Point going to comply with President Trump’s orders to end DEI? All 4 receive large funds from the federal government.
Guilford County Schools (GCS) receives funding from the federal government. The amount of federal funding varies from year to year, but GCS has received millions of dollars in federal funding in recent years.
Explanation
In 2021–2022, GCS received 26.7% of its funding from the federal government, the highest percentage among North Carolina’s 10 largest school districts.
In 2022–2023, GCS received 27.4% of its operating budget from the federal government.
In 2023–2024, GCS’s projected operating budget included an estimated $186,836,743 in federal funding.
In the 2024–2025 budget proposal, GCS requested that 10% of its funding come from the federal government.
Guilford County, North Carolina receives funding from the federal government. The county has received funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), opioid settlements, and the HOME Consortium.
American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)
Guilford County received $104 million in emergency funding from the ARPA for COVID-19 relief and economic recovery. The funds must be spent by the end of 2026.
Opioid settlements
Guilford County received $21,735,653 over 18 years from an opioid settlement. The county used the funds to hire a Drug & Injury Prevention Manager.
HOME Consortium
Guilford County receives a percentage of the annual HOME grant from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. The HOME grant funds activities to address homelessness.
City of Greensboro, North Carolina receives federal funding from various programs. Some of these programs include:
American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA): Greensboro received $59.4 million from this program for COVID-19 relief and economic recovery. The funds must be spent by December 31, 2026.
Community Safety Department grant: Greensboro received a $2 million grant to support its mission of making the city safe. The grant will be used to implement new violence intervention and prevention strategies.
HOME grant: Greensboro receives a percentage of the total annual HOME grant from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG): Greensboro receives funding from this grant to address homelessness.
Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA): Greensboro receives funding from this grant to provide rental housing assistance to people living with HIV/AIDS.
Federal Transit Administration grant: Greensboro received a $500,000 grant for its downtown depot.
Department of Housing and Urban Development grant: Greensboro received a grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development in 2019.
City of High Point, North Carolina receives federal funding from various sources, including the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), the US Department of Transportation (USDOT), and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Sources of federal funding
American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)
High Point received $22,699,511 in ARPA funds to help with revenue losses and safety expenses during the COVID-19 pandemic.
USDOT RAISE Grants
High Point received $19.8 million in RAISE grants to fund the High Point on the Rise project. This project included improving downtown and southwest neighborhoods, building a greenway loop, and redoing Elm Street as a complete street.
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)
High Point receives annual funding through CDBG to carry out activities that benefit its citizens.
HOME Investment Partnership Act (HOME)
High Point receives annual funding through HOME to carry out activities that benefit its citizens.
Federal Aid Highway Act
High Point must have a comprehensive transportation planning process to receive federal funding.
It is time for the constituents of guilford county and greensboro to wake up. Local governments are spending the hard earned money taxpayers send in for the “want” list, not meeting the basic needs of the taxpayers. This is basic economics. You must pay for the things you need, such as safe functional schools, a robust police force to protect citizens, adequate fire prevention, Maintained roads and storm water facilities, before you fund the wants, such as equity training, conferences, robotics and gaming elementary schools, etc etc.
Our priorities are not in order. Anyone who has ever managed a household budget, much less a city budget should be educated enough to know you have to have the leak in the roof repaired and and hvac fixed before you build a robotics lab around the corner. What good will that grade school taj mahal do our students if they miss out on educational hours in high school due to lack of heat? When they can’t pass the class, I doubt MIT will accept them.
We do not have a funding problem, we have a spending problem, and an inability to decipher needs from wants, coupled with a lack of desire to do what is needed over what is sexy. It is hard to brag that there is heat in the high school, and the roof doesn’t leak. It doesn’t get a news article written about you. It is, however, what is necessary.
It is time for taxpayers to fire this board of education at the next election, and install new members with common sense answers for keeping our children safe, and putting education and results first.
We’ll, you make some very good points here, but until the voters decide they’ve had enough of both the current county officials and school board members the situation remains the same.
As long as there is district voting, self-centered, incompetent politicians will continue to be elected.
DEI – Anybody notice in High Point who the City Manager is, Who the Mayor is, Who the Chief of Police is, Who the Fire Chief is, and in the County Who the Sheriff is, Who the Chief Deputy is. As Goomer would say Surprise, Surprise, Surprise. Like Trump said, enough of DEI, lets hire the most qualified. Lets vote in the most qualified. Maybe if that happens, all the High Point City and Guilford County vacancies will be filled and we might be safer.
High Point began in a new direction several years ago; maybe that DEI is involved; maybe that the Chamber of Commerce or local businesses had a hand. But the false prophet of DEI is doomed to failure as it is unsustainable because DEI is based on mediocrity. It is a house of cards.
The school board. What is it good for? No matter how much you are forced to feed the govt maw, it is never enough.
Govt-run schools do not teach our children how to think, but what to think.
“Joint Capital/Facilities Committee” = Joint Commissioner/BoE CYA operation.
Overheard behind closed doors of said Committee…’if the peasants buy this, they’ll buy ANYTHING’
All those millions – sorry, Billions – and they can’t even keep the heat on.
Can you say “Third World”? The folk receiving the money sure look like the Third World.
Full Audit before they get another dime.