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Gilmer County Schools submits SBA major-needs project to update middle-school science lab
Summary
Superintendent's team submitted a Major Needs (SBA) project to replace hot-water/boiler systems and run plumbing into middle-school science lab M204; the $1.1 million project would require an estimated district share (discussed in meeting) and, if unfunded, the district plans to run water independently and purchase equipment to create functional labs by next school year.
The Gilmer County Schools administration told the board it has submitted a Major Needs project to the School Building Authority to upgrade hot-water and plumbing infrastructure needed for a functioning middle-school science lab.
Dr. May, reporting under the science-lab update, said the district filed the application "today I submitted a a major need improvement project," one that would replace the boiler and run hot water and plumbing directly into room M204, a larger classroom identified for a new middle-school lab. She said the full project cost is about $1.1 million and noted the district's "share was 300,000, right?" while also flagging roughly $50,000 would put water into the actual science room.
The superintendent and science staff described the educational rationale: the middle-school lab space needs plumbing and updated equipment to support hands-on instruction and align with the Calhoun Gilmer Career Center schedule. Dr. May said high-school physics and chemistry classrooms are comparatively better outfitted and that the district plans to purchase equipment in the spring and coordinate maintenance for summer installation if the SBA request is not funded.
If the SBA project is approved, work could occur quickly over the summer when contractors are available, the administration said; if not funded, the district intends to run water into the lab with in-house maintenance and buy equipment to assemble usable labs for the next school year.
No formal vote was required on the submission itself; the board received the report as presented. The superintendent said the district should know within a few months whether the project will be funded.
The board also discussed teacher wish lists, microscope servicing needs and the goal of growing student interest in science careers such as nursing, allied health and geology.
The board will monitor the SBA response and next steps; the administration said it would proceed with purchasing equipment and coordinating installation if the grant is not awarded.
