District signs Innovation Center lease; director outlines CTE plans and asks for metrics

The Summer County School District signed a lease for an Innovation Center and began moving into the building in late July, the district's director of schools said Aug. 4. Dr. Lamers, director of schools, said the district took occupancy Friday and that the career and technical education (CTE) team will operate programs at the Innovation Center. "Our CTE team will operate on the innovation center, and I'll share a more comprehensive rollout plan in September," he told the committee. He described planned programs including aviation, criminal justice and vocational/dual-enrollment courses and said the center will allow smaller schools to combine students to meet enrollment thresholds for specialized classes. A public commenter, Kevin Beggercourt, who identified himself by address, urged the committee to produce "real reporting with actual numbers" on the Innovation Center's progress and to provide such reports at a regular frequency so the public can evaluate performance. "If this is such a great idea, let's count it," Beggercourt said during public comment. Lamers described early transportation planning for the center: the district is working on bus schedules and acknowledged travel times — "It's 41 minutes from West Wallen High School to the Innovation Center," he said — and said the district has 588 buses and is planning routes to make shared classes feasible. He said additional rollout details will be shared in September. Discussion versus decision: the transcript records no committee motion or formal vote on the Innovation Center at this meeting; it records occupancy, program planning and public comment requesting metrics. Direction recorded in the meeting: Lamers said he will present a more comprehensive rollout plan in September. Next steps: Lamers said a more detailed rollout plan will be presented to the committee in September; the transcript does not include a timetable or reporting frequency for the requested metrics.