The Dickson County School Board voted Dec. 18 to approve a revised facilities focus document — intended for the county commission and for designers — after members agreed to remove a line referencing “general maintenance beyond the scope of an annual budget.”

Board Member (Speaker 9) moved to strike the general-maintenance language, arguing it could mislead community members and commissioners about the district’s available funds; the motion carried. Speaker 12 then renewed a motion to approve the document as revised and the board accepted the scope as the district’s priorities to present to the county commission.

Board members repeatedly emphasized that the document is meant to give designers marching orders and to share priorities with the county commission, not to request immediate funding or guarantee all items will be funded. “I just don’t want it to be a document that is presented that for the money we get approved, all of these will be done to a degree unspecified,” Speaker 12 said during the discussion, urging clearer wording.

The board debated whether to label the document a “plan,” “focus” or “priorities,” and settled on language emphasizing focus and scope to avoid implying guaranteed funding. The vote did not list individual roll-call tallies in the record; the board chair announced the motion carried.

The revised document will be shared with county commission staff as the district’s stated priorities and will guide the district’s architects and designers in preparing cost estimates and next steps.