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Morgan County Schools reports progress on Rural Development Park career-technical center
Summary
School staff said demolition is mostly complete at the Rural Development Park career-technical center, with plumbing and network work underway; the gym will double as lab and community conference space and an August parent meeting is scheduled.
Miss Hudson, a staff member for Morgan County Schools, reported that demolition is largely finished and construction work is moving forward at the Rural Development Park career-technical center that will host Morgan County students in August.
The project team has completed most demolition on the new-construction side, installed the fire alarm, begun major data/network rerouting and started plumbing work needed for a dental lab and new restrooms, Miss Hudson said. "It's looking great. It's gonna be great when it's all complete," she said.
The renovation repurposes several existing spaces: the old library will become a nursing lab, an area behind the main office will be a personal protective equipment (PPE) lab and the gym lobby and court will be used for lab and conference activities. Miss Hudson said the school intends to use the gym as lab space for programs such as nursing and EMT training in partnership with Calhoun. She said the project team removed the gym bleachers and repainted halls and the gym.
Construction milestones and near-term work include concrete cuts for dental hygiene stations, plumbing that began the day before the update and electrical framing to support extra outlets and equipment in career-technical classrooms. Miss Hudson said the new-construction portion is about 90% complete on demolition and that the estimated finish date for the construction work is October; staff are "hoping to get that down" so students can begin classes in the new space in August.
Board members and staff also noted ancillary planning: a parent meeting is scheduled for Aug. 5 at 6 p.m. for families of students who will start at the site, and the agenda included a quote for chairs and tables to equip a conference-room setup in the gym.
Discussion versus decisions: the report was informational; no formal actions or votes on construction contracts were recorded in the transcript excerpt. Staff described the work underway and sought continued board support and approval on purchasing furniture (a furniture quote was on the meeting agenda), but the transcript does not record a board decision on that quote.
Community context: staff framed the center both as a career-technical training site and as a community hub that could host events such as the district's state-of-the-schools presentation and career-tech banquets. The report acknowledged heavy use of district staff time—maintenance, custodians and directors—to move furniture and prepare rooms.
Miss Hudson and district staff stressed they are coordinating with Calhoun for nursing and dental pinning ceremonies and lab instruction; staff said the network and electrical work are a "huge portion" of the job and are nearly finished.
The district did not provide an exact calendar date when students will occupy the new construction beyond the intent to have students start in August and the construction estimate of October, nor did the transcript include a revised, binding completion schedule or a final budget reconciliation for the RDP work.
