JMCSS granted funds for new Pope School
JACKSON, Tenn. — A day many parents and school leaders in Jackson and Madison County have been waiting for has arrived.
Parents and students in the crowd cheered as the Madison County Commission granted funds for a new Pre-K through 8th grade Pope School.
“When we first started, it was going to be $32,000,000, and we upped it to $36,000,000. We have ARPA money right now, of about $17,000,000. What we can do, is that way we’ll just use $12,000,000 of ARPA money for the school and that will leave us about $4,000,000 to use for capital and other things that we need to do,” said Madison County Budget Chairman, Doug Stephenson.
Stephenson says he is excited the decision was made.
He said with the Great Wolf Lodge and Blue Oval Project making their way to the area, the commission has a lot of big decisions to make.
“And we need to make smart decisions, and so the thing is, I think we’re going to see a lot of growth and we just have to be careful about what we do in a orderly manner,” Stephenson said.
Jackson-Madison County School Board Member, AJ Massey says this project has been a long-time coming.
“The fact that it’s happening and it’s going to happen soon, it’s incredible, it’s humbling, it’s exciting. It’s really going to change the landscape of Madison County,” Massey said.
Massey says the benefits of a new Pope School are endless.
“It’s just hitting at the right time. I think it’s going to attract families to our community. I think it’s going to maintain families in our community, and I think the county commission saw things more than just a few years down the road. They looked at it long term so that the next couple of generations are going to get to enjoy that building and have clean, safe neighborhood schools and a brand new Pope,” Massey said.
Massey says the current Pope Elementary is the oldest, active school building in the system. So the project is well overdue.
Massey says there’s no official timeline set for when the new school will be complete, but he says hopefully by at least fall of 2024.
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