The addition of new classroom space will play a large role in forming the next five-year facilities plan for Floyd County Schools, said Superintendent Kelly Henson.

“Top priority will be additional classrooms, particularly at the elementary and middle level,” he said. “We may need some at the high school level, too.”

While specifics haven’t been outlined yet, the development of that plan could officially begin today when the school board is expected to approve a resolution calling for a study.

Henson said it is common for school systems in the state to develop a building plan every five years.

He expects the school system to eventually ask for another special purpose, local option sales tax to fund some of the projects.

“We are just beginning the process to talk about what projects will comprise the list,” Henson said, “some of which will appear on SPLOST.”

The current school SPLOST is set to expire in March 2009, though Henson said it may end in December 2008 because of strong collections.

The previous SPLOST was almost $50 million. It was used in part by Floyd to upgrde the Pepperell schools and by Rome to renovate East and West Central elementary schools.

The process of evaluating school needs will begin with the board giving input then all school councils, officials, parents and community members will have the opportunity to discuss what they think is needed.

The final list will have to be approved by the board.

The state Department of Education must also approve the plan, even though it won’t provide all the funding, said Henson.

During the last five years, about $49 million was spent on the schools, but only approximately $1.6 million came from the state capital outlay fund, with the balance coming from local and SPLOST taxes.

Once Floyd has an idea of its facility needs, it will meet with Rome City Schools to determine the needs of the next SPLOST as well as develop citizen committees to guide the process.

The school board meets at 7 p.m. at 600 Riverside Parkway.