Old Fort High School; Good idea?

McDowell High School has been the only public high school in the county since it opened nearly 40 years ago. That will change, if some in Old Fort get their wish.

Old Fort Elementary Principal Charles Gaffigan said many of the town's leaders and parents are excited about turning Old Fort Elementary into Old Fort School -- a return to the K-12 status Old Fort had for decades. In remarks to The McDowell News Monday, Gaffigan explained some of the reasons behind the idea.

"I've been here about six years," he said, "and every year parents tell me they wish their children could stay at Old Fort. It's nothing against Marion or the county, and certainly nothing against McDowell High, but Old Fort is our own community, with our own family atmosphere."

He said the alumni weekend festivals (the annual event has been held two years in a row) have become major highlights in the Old Fort year. The attendees have an abiding love for the school, he said, it is clear the at Old Fort considers the school to be the heart of the community. He learned at these festivals how important the high school was to Old Fort, and said the town lost something that united its people and bound them together when the high school moved to Marion.

He identified at least one advantage to the county in having a high school at Old Fort; transportation costs would be dramatically decreased for the school system and county taxpayers as well as Old Fort families.

"We are the furthest community away from Marion," he said. "It's not a simple ten-minute drive for our kids. The school system could save a fortune on diesel fuel."

He said the close connection between families in Old Fort means the town's people would be more aware of where each child belonged.

"If you see a kid walking down the street, you know who he is and if he's supposed to be in school you know who his parents are," he added. "This is a very small town and that's a good thing. Everyone in this town takes care of the kids."

He estimated that about 280 Old Fort kids currently attend West Junior High and McDowell High in the ninth- through twelfth grades. On average, he said, about 70 Old Fort kids are in each grade level.

One thing that gave him pause was the relative small size of that class. Could such a small school provide the wide range of classes needed in a modern high school education?

"A couple of weeks ago I attended High School 101 at McDowell High," he stated. "I realized then that any course in the North Carolina Standard Course of Study can be taught through the North Carolina Virtual Public School." The Virtual Public School allows students from rural schools to take classes formerly available only to well-funded urban schools.

But wouldn't that require a lot of costly computer equipment?

"We've got two computer labs (with 28 work stations each) right now," he answered. "One more computer lab and we'd have enough to do it."

Yes, he conceded, adding the upper grades at Old Fort would necessitate a new building. It's not a change that could be made overnight. But the county has been hashing over ideas for a new school for some time. Gaffigan felt that the size of the building Old Fort would need would be much smaller -- thus much cheaper -- than some other alternatives.

That would solve the space issue that has prevented McDowell adopting a middle school format followed by the rest of the state. With Old Fort students remaining in Old Fort, there would be plenty of room for sixth- seventh- and eighth grades at the current junior high schools, and ninth- through twelfth grades at McDowell High.

He said he has discussed the idea with Old Fort aldermen, school staff, the school improvement team and PTO members, and "they all said it was a great idea and something they would like to explore. They were 100 percent in favor of it.

"I hope everyone understands," he said, "that this is in no way against McDowell High. I spent 14 years at MHS and I love that school. But this is about what the people of Old Fort want and what's best for them."

He said the school administration had given him permission to poll public opinion.

"There has been so much positive response from the staff and the aldermen," he stated. "The next step will be to get the parents' ideas. I'll be sending home a letter, probably next Monday, and the use the Connect Ed system to take a survey a few days later," probably on Thursday, March 25.