Will There Ever Be Enough School Funding in Orange County?
City school funding in southern Orange is amongst the highest in the state, yet I get email spam about a Chapelboro “school foundation”. What's that? It's a fundraising plea for the city schools. What's the deal here? Are the Chapelboro schools really that desperate for money? Our municipal taxes, about half of which go towards school funding, are so high already, why is this sort of begging necessary? Sure the commishes (county commissioners) don't fully fund either of the two school systems here, but is it simply a lack of funding or are other factors in play?
A little research (http://www.schoolclearinghouse.org/) shows that the CY 2006 square foot costs for the new Eubanks Road Morris Grove elementary school is a whopping $221.00. This construction rate compares unfavorably with the 2007 square foot costs for River Bend Elementary school in Wake County, weighing in at $168 per square foot. Morris Grove costs about 31% more. If city schools could build a school at Wake County cost levels, it would have SAVED $4.7 MILLION DOLLARS on the cost of that school. More than enough to pay for rodent and insect extermination at Chapel Hill High school, and whatever the “school foundation” is begging for. Project such savings over the next ten county schools to be built and you're talking getting ten schools for the price of seven.
Apologists for the Chapelboro school system are quick to explain that Chapelboro has “better” schools, and thus they cost more. Better how? In the size of the windows?, Where does the money go? Architect fees? Overly expensive diesel generators? “Green” features like the water recycling system at Smith Middle that has never worked? Better big screen monitors at the new Carrboro High school?
If Chapelboro is copying old designs, shouldn't there be some savings over past costs, adjusting for material price increases?
It's clear that the Chapelboro and Orange County school funding process is badly broken. It's also clear that the Chapelboro spending process on facilities is out of wack too. While basic needs for existing buildings are not being met, there's enough money to waste on “green” $$$ real estate marketing features of the new schools.
