After talking with County Mayor Richard Stewart, the Franklin County School Board voted to deed most of the Townsend School property to the county. Stewart addressed the board at the March 12 work session. The school system will retain the gym and the football field.

Stewart cited the precedent of the Franklin County Business Development Center (FCBDC), which provides office space to business startups and hosts classes in industrial maintenance and nursing taught by the Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT). The county leases the building from the University of Tennessee Research Foundation for $50 per year. The building was slated for demolition. Grant money from the Appalachian Regional Commission enabled the county to refurbish the facility.

“The FCBDC building is full,” Stewart said, suggesting the school donate or lease the Townsend building and 1.8-acre site to the county for such FCBDC programs. Stewart also proposed the Townsend building house a “Franklin County heritage museum with a room devoted to black heritage.” Prior to integration, Townsend was the county’s only African-American high school.

The board expressed concern deeding Townsend School to Franklin County might generate complaints the board gave away tax payer property. Two possible scenarios existed: one, that the county might in turn donate the property to a private entity or, two, that the county might sell the property to a private entity.

Stewart reassured the board that by law, “Same as you, the county can’t give tax payer dollars away.” But Stewart conceded, “I can’t control the county selling it.”

“The cleanest thing would be to deed the property to the county, rather than lease it,” said Board Chair CleiJo Walker. The school system would be relieved of possible legal and liability issues. The board concurred.

To counter complaints the board gave away school property, the board will ask school attorney Chuck Cagle to include a rider on the deed transfer stipulating the school system receive a percentage of the sale proceeds in the event the county sells the property.

An empty 5.2-acre tract adjoining the school property will likely be put up for bid once a value is established.

Resuming a discussion about school safety, the board received an update on the Raptor visitor management software in use on a trial basis at some schools. The software scans visitors’ IDs and runs a background check.

All but five schools have the Raptor program, said Mark Montoye, school system safety specialist.

While the software has not red-flagged any visitors, Montoye stressed that the program gave principals and teachers comfort and served as a deterrent simply “because we have it in place.”

“The principals I’ve talked to like the program,” Montoye said, “and those that don’t have it want it.”

Asked if the program was used at after school events, Montoye said at large events it “wasn’t feasible to scan IDs in a timely manner.”

“We need to put it in all the schools or take it out altogether,” said Director of Schools Stanley Bean.

Startup costs for the program is $3,000 per school. Bean will investigate the possibility of the schools system receiving a reduced “group rate.”

The board approved a number of policy changes recommended by the Tennessee School Board Association. One policy provides for administration of an opioid antagonist in the event of a drug overdose. The other new policy provides for administering Glucagon, a hormone that helps the liver release sugar, and Diazepam, a seizure inhibiting drug. An amendment to the Graduation Requirements policy provides for a diploma for special education students who have not demonstrated sufficient mastery of skills to earn a regular diploma.

The next board meeting is April 9. The board will meet with the county commission to discuss funding for a consolidated middle school at 6 p.m., April 10, at the F.C. Annex.