The Cullman County Board of Education is always looking to improve the quality of education its students receive, whether that means new and revamped facilities or utilizing the latest innovations in technology.
A big part of that work has been the implementation of the district’s strategic plan which calls for new facilities at nearly all of its campuses.
In February 2023, the CCBOE unveiled a newly overhauled Academy of Cosmetology at the Cullman Area Technology Academy which simulates a real-world environment students are likely to encounter as they begin working in a professional salon. One year later, a state of the art welding facility was completed at Holly Pond High School featuring 10-12 welding booths along with advanced lighting and ventilation systems.
The first dedicated Good Hope Middle School gym and library was completed just ahead of the current school year, meaning that students would no longer need to share a space with their high-school level peers. The new building also included a new library space which has provided more flexibility to teachers scheduling lessons and students an opportunity to socialize between classes.
Good Hope school board representative Kerry Neighbors said the expansion was “long overdue” and recalled his time spent selling advertisements through his former real estate company in an attempt to raise funds for the project. He said he was among one of the first students to attend classes in the existing middle school classrooms and was excited that his 8th grade daughter, Caroline, would be one of the first students to benefit from the expansion.
“As we’ve been building this, I’ve told her, “OK kid … I want you to be the first girl to score a basket in this gym.’ So, don’t be surprised if she takes a lot of shots this year,” Neighbors said.
Like the new facilities in Good Hope, the inclusion of a dedicated elementary school cafeteria at Hanceville will ease the pressure of the school’s child nutrition workers.
Included in the project are an additional 16 classrooms which double as a 645 occupant tornado shelter designed to withstand winds as much as 250 mph.
After maintaining the county’s oldest occupied school building for nearly a century — the elementary school was opened in 1932 — the additional classroom space should come as a welcome addition to students and faculty alike. The building has been designed with several modern safety features such as fire doors and safety entrances and doubles as a 645-occupant storm shelter capable of withstanding 250 mph winds.
Students who ride the bus to and from school will now be able to do so much safer, and definitely more comfortable, as the district added 51 new buses to its fleet which, for the first time in the CCBOE’s history, offered air conditioning.
Air ride suspension systems will reduce the amount of vibrations, which previously caused the buses’ mirror arms to become loosened, and an additional folding stop sign — located toward the back of the vehicle — will allow the bus to be more visible at close proximities. An internal/external speaker system will allow for drivers to more effectively communicate with students both onboard and outside of the bus, and an onboard collision detection system will self-activate the vehicle’s braking system when it detects the potential of a crash.
The buses also feature additional strobe lighting and lighted destination signs — on the front and rear of the bus — increasing visibility and helping drivers easily identify the vehicle during early morning hours.
Drivers ed students were also given a significant upgrade in style when the CCBOE purchased three new 2024 Chevrolet Equinoxes to replace its current fleet of worn-out 2006 Ford Tauruses.
CCBOE Superintendent Shane Barnette said that with more students driving choosing to drive mid-size SUVs it was important to train them on vehicles similar to the ones they would be using in real life.
“I’m just excited we’re able to provide these to the students of Cullman County. Learning to drive is such an important skill for all of our students transitioning into adulthood and we want to train them on the kind of vehicles they’re going to be driving one day. Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to do that for a long time. Thankfully, the board has now made it a priority and we were able buy some quality vehicles to not only keep our students safe, but to let them learn to drive on some of the best quality vehicles out there right now,” Barnette said.
Barnette will spend the next four years working on the system’s strategic plan after winning nearly 75% of the vote in the superintendent race. For first time in more than a decade, Cullman County voters had a direct role in choosing the CCBOE superintendent after reverting the role back to an elected position in 2022.
Just after securing his victory on Super Tuesday, Barnette said he was excited to continue the work his administration had already set in motion, but believed the district’s best days were still ahead of them.
“I’m just super excited that the people of Cullman County came out and supported me today. This just shows that we are doing good things and we’ve got even better things planned ahead. We’re going to continue working on that strategic plan that we’ve developed as a school system and I honestly believe that the next few years are going to be the best years ever in our district,” Barnette said.