The residents of Signal Mountain finally got their chance Monday night to ask questions about a possible breakaway from Hamilton County Schools.
For about eight months, the public was not able to ask questions while a seven-member School System Viability Committee studied whether the town could feasibly pull out of the Hamilton County Schools and create its own district.
Last week, committee Chairman John Friedl said questioning was not allowed during the panel's work sessions because it would have "dramatically increased the amount of time we spent and it would have distracted us from the job we were doing."
The committee's 48-page final report was made public last month. Monday night's community meeting was the first of several aimed at gathering public input about the possible breakaway now that the report has been finalized.
More than 80 questions were submitted online, Friedl said. Only some of those were addressed before opening the floor to audience members to ask questions.
Friedl, speaking for the panel, did not answer some of the questions, noting that "it's not our committee's responsibility to determine" certain aspects of the investigation. Those questions included whether a final budget had been created, if a tax increase will be implemented or if technical programs will be offered in mountain schools.
"I don't want anyone to think that our committee is ducking questions like this when we say, 'That's not what we're here for,'" Friedl said, adding that those questions would be better addressed by an elected school board or referred to other officials who would be better equipped with answers.
Closer to the end of the meeting, committee member Tom McCullough asked if anyone had questions about special education. Two mothers raised questions about the proposed budget's allocation of money for special education teachers and experts.
Both women pointed out that, because Hamilton County Schools' budget is much larger, they are able to employ a variety of experts to address the many needs of special education students. They asked whether a separate, smaller district would be able to provide the same level of care and education for those students.
Committee member Amy Wakim said policies would have to be set by an elected school board.
"I think the purpose of our committee was to make sure the school board would have in place the resources that they need to take care of these children," she said.
Wakim said the committee asked Hamilton County several questions about its budget for special needs and compared that budget to other districts of similar size. She said they found the amount allocated for special needs is in line with or a bit higher than those districts.
The committee will host a few more informational sessions over the next two months, including one featuring officials from other municipalities that have broken away from larger districts.
The town council will reconvene during its December work session after the public meetings and members will decide their next step, whether that be planning more meetings, starting public input sessions or moving in a different direction.
"We're in no hurry to come to a decision for a referendum or anything," town council member Amy Speek said last week. "We're just answering questions."
Contact staff writer Rosana Hughes at rhughes@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6327. Follow her on Twitter @HughesRosana.