Board looks to get larger central office

Brunswick County Schools are not the only buildings tightening beneath the crunch of overcrowding.

Steve Miley, executive director of operations, said the central office is much too small for the administration and staff.

Miley brought preliminary renovation plans and presented them to the board of education’s monthly committee meetings last Tuesday. The central office was designed with enough space for 53 workstations—far less than the 82 current employees.

“We’re just plain running out of room here,” Miley said.

The central office could be renovated for about $600,000, Miley said.

But with two new schools under construction and one being renovated, some board members said a face-lift for central office can wait.

“I think this whole project on central office needs to be put on the back burner,” board member Jimmy Hobbs said. “The taxpayers are really saying enough is enough.”

Miley told board members he hoped central office staff could relocate to the cooperative extension building once the cooperative extension staff moves to the new county administration building when it opens.

But the move is not a guarantee.

Board member Charlie Miller said that would be “the deciding factor” for his decision on renovating central office.

In other business, the board:

• Learned of a new service added to the school’s background check system. Guardian, criminal activity monitoring system, will notify the school within 24 hours of any criminal activity concerning its employees. Administrators can also go online to view recent activity. Terry Chestnutt, assistant superintendent of human resources, said this service has already found several reports on potential candidates for employment. This service is available to the district at no cost.

• Was informed Progress Energy has donated five walk-through metal detectors.