The question before the Howard County Council is whether to side with the School Board and fund a renovation at Mount Hebron High School or side with teachers and delay the project in favor of a new school.
Council members heard from students, teachers and parents Tuesday during a public hearing on the board?s proposed $661.1 million operating and $113.8 million capital budgets.
Some members of Help Mount Hebron, a subcommittee of the school?s PTSA, support the $57.3 million renovation plan.
But Mount Hebron junior Mahila Amjad, of Ellicott City, was one of the most powerful speakers against the renovation.
“Imagine walking into a building surrounded by debris, caution tape and plaster. Imagine dirt everywhere,” she said.
“Imagine constant drilling and hammering during a major AP physics exam.”
The project will include a 70,000-square-foot addition in the place of the old English wing, expanded and modernized fine arts, and athletic and administrative suites.
Scott Robinson, a media teacher at the school, said 95 percent of staff members want to delay the project.
“The Mount Hebron staff has put forth an initiative that proposes when the cost of a school renovation exceeds 50 percent of the cost of a replacement, that there be a re-evaluation of the renovation plan,” he said.
But school officials said a new school is too costly, at $80 million.
Many Help Mount Hebron members say the current renovation plan will create a safe and code-compliant school.
“We know it?s practically impossible for any plan to please 100 percent of constituents,” said Tony Culler, president of the Mount Hebron PTSA.
School officials are asking the council to move the $27 million for the renovations from a contingency fund to the regular capital budget.
