Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Devils Can Open '97 Season In New Gym

Good news for Gurdon High School -- the bleachers are in and being installed.

This information was given to the Gurdon School Board during its regular monthly meeting Tuesday, Dec. 17.

Bobby Smithson, Gurdon superintendent, said it will take two or three weeks to get the bleachers installed in the new gym, but they should be ready by the time the Go-Devils open play in 1997 -- this will be Jan. 17 when they host Stamps.

A dedication ceremony will be held between the senior girls and boys game.

"It's a tremendous facility," Smithson said.

Now, Gurdon will be bidding on becoming the regional tournament host at the end of the season.

Turning to the topic of the district's suit against the asphalt company that paved the GHS lots, Smithson said the first estimate of $14,000 to repair the damage has been revamped to $24,000 because of further deterioration.

The suit, he said, may go to court sometime next year.

Smithson said the district ended September $54,000 in arrears, and is $55,000 short in its contingency fund. However, the shortage in the contingency fund is the result of helping pay off the construction costs of the new gym.

More than $600,000 in taxes came in during November, which is the largest tax payment received during the year.

If all goes according to plan, Smithson said, the district would end up adding $60,000 to the contingency fund.

These funds should also be aided by the district getting in 10 new students, if it loses none.

The board was informed of the purchase of four used buses, three of which will be placed in the district's fleet. One is already in use. These buses, Smithson said, need some work, but will help the district avoid buying new buses for a few more years.

Smithson said the district has applied for a grant from the Horace Cabe Foundation for $350,000. Should this grant be approved, the district would use it toward constructing a new middle school near GHS.

Smithson said it is hoped a new GMS can be built for about $1 million. The remaining $650,000, he said, could be obtained in second lien bonds against the district's assessments.

The district should know if the grant is approved sometime in February, he said.

The district's annual report card from the Arkansas Department of Education came in last week as well.

Smithson said the ADE compares schools in 16 areas to reach its conclusions.

Gurdon, he said, has similar problems with other districts. He compared the district with 13 others in Southwest Arkansas to see how it stacked up.

Smithson's comparison showed Gurdon to have a high retention rate for grades K-8, with most of these being in the first grade.

He said many students don't have the skills to advance from first to second grade and are held back.

Another area of concern was the results of the Stanford-8 tests. Gurdon students scored below 29 percent in the 25th percentile for grades 5-7-10.

The problem, Smithson said, is in motivating the students to try harder. Parental assistance is needed, he said.

The district is also below average in scoring in the 50th percentile, but is average for those scoring in the 75th percentile and above.

Gurdon students also showed to be below average in ACT test results. However, part of the reason is because 92.9 percent of GHS students take the test, which is an unusually high number. The state average is 62 percent taking the ACT.

Smithson said he is not concerned with the ACT portion of the report card.

Additionally, the district is below average in athletic expenses, but Smithson said this is because coaches salaries are included with the salaries of other teachers and not as athletic expenses.

Returning to the retention rate problem, Smithson said one problem is the lack of a modern computer lab at Gurdon Primary School.

Such a lab, he said, would help with scores.

But, those students who lack the skills to advance, he said, should not be promoted and should be held back.

GHS had the second computer lab in the state in the 1970s. This equipment has been changed out twice since then.

GMS has also had its computer equipment changed twice since being installed. However, GPS has yet to have its computers changed.

Smithson said the district has applied for a grant to modernize the GPS computer lab, but didn't get it.

He said the district may attempt to upgrade the equipment instead. This can be done for about $20,000, instead of the $80,000 required to buy new computers.