LYNCHBURG, Va. – Former Lynchburg city Mayor Michael Gillette is back at the head of the table.
Chosen by city council, Gillette and five other city, school and community members make up the joint-city school task force, created to address the school system's future.
"We need to look at whether we need all the schools that we have. Should we consolidate schools? Should we add schools? Should we change the attendance zone for varies schools," Gillette, chairperson of task force, said.
The task force will eventually have 16 members. On Monday, the initial six held their first meeting.
"As we develop these plans, we thought, 'We can't do this short-term. We need to have a plan long-term.' How we're going to reinvent the education system in terms of building usage," Susan Morrison, chair of LCS school board, said.
Members say Lynchburg is an aging school division whose buildings are deteriorating.
Since they are owned by the city, school officials can't do much without city approval.
"They've been very supportive of Lynchburg City Schools and the building needs. But we have to look at moving forward, how are we going to do with the best use of our finances with the best use of our resources," Morrison said.
"We believe that the school system facilities are highly important. The city owns those buildings. We want to make sure the work we're doing is integrated together so we're moving in the same direction," Reid Wodicka, deputy city manager, said.
The group says it's more than just repairing old buildings. It's about fixing the achievement gap and getting students ready for the real world after graduation.
"Do we have the facilities and the programs to be able to provide these for them? We think we do. We think we're getting there, but we need to look at what's being done in other communities as well," Morrison said.
The task force hopes to present its final plan before city council and school board members by November
"We are at the very beginning phase of a very broad strategic view. So we are going to be taking all those issues under consideration," Gillette said.
