District staff report 33.7-acre parcel under contract for new Southern National Middle School; board committee selects Oakley Collier to bring to full board

District staff told Nash County Public Schools committee members on May 15 that the district is under contract on a 33.7-acre parcel for a new Southern National Middle School and that environmental testing is underway with a projected closing on May 22.

Why it matters: securing a site and selecting an architect are early, substantive steps in school construction that set timelines for design, permitting and construction procurement.

Miss Miller (district staff) said an RFQ process solicited five architect teams; one withdrew during the process. A selection committee interviewed four finalists and recommended Oakley Collier. "We are requesting that the board accept Oakley Collier as a selection for the architect to design the new school," Miller said. The district said no contract has yet been negotiated nor signed; the committee vote was to forward the selection to the full board for final action.

Board action: A committee motion to accept Oakley Collier as the recommended architect and carry the recommendation to the full board passed at the committee meeting. The committee said the projected land closing date is May 22 and that environmental testing is in progress.

The presentation named members of the interview/selection committee: (as stated in the meeting) Dennis Fields, Dr. Farrow, Melissa Dancy Smith, Robbie Davis and Jeff Rogers (assistant director for maintenance), along with the district staff who presented the RFQ results.

Ending: District staff said they will notify finalists only after contract negotiations and that the selection brought forward is a recommendation rather than an executed architect contract. The land purchase and architect contract will both return to the full board for formal approval.