In November 2018, Roane County voters authorized a school bond levy focused on the health and safety of our students and staff, themed "Securing Our Future."
Through careful management and thoughtful planning, the construction program funded by this issue has continued to perform well below budget, allowing the Board to fund additional projects throughout the county.
This is the fifth in a five-part series recapping the construction program undertaken as a result of that bond levy.
In 1993, when Roane County High School opened, focus shifted to middle school facilities across the county. Spencer High School received some renovation to transition to a middle, but in the Walton and Geary areas, new middle school additions were completed with support from the West Virginia School Building Authority in 1998 and 2010, respectively.
Students in the Spencer area, however, have not seen a new middle school facility ever. In fact, the last new facility built for these grade levels was the former Spencer Grade School (now the Committee on Aging Building in Spencer), which predates all current Roane County school facilities.
Though construction of a new Spencer Middle School was not a project included in the 2018 bond levy election, planning for this long-awaited project was. Voters authorized $220,000 to study sites, develop an educational specification, and have architects and engineers put together a preliminary plan for the new facility.
Thanks in large part to this planning study, in April 2021, the SBA approved a $13,950,000 grant to Roane County, with $1,550,000 in local matching funds, to build a new Spencer Middle School. Since the planning study was already complete, these funds could be dedicated to the development of construction documents and the construction of the facility itself, helping to keep the funding focused on providing our students with the best possible learning facility.
Bids for the construction of the new Spencer Middle School are scheduled to be opened on Wednesday, July 27, 2022, at 1:30 pm in the Roane County Board of Education offices in Spencer. Construction is expected to begin shortly after a winning bid is identified and accepted by the Board.
SECURING OUR FUTURE - PLANNING FOR A NEW SPENCER MIDDLE SCHOOL
| Budget for Project Area | Actual Cost Committed | Remaining Budget |
| $220,000 | $220,000 | — |