For years people on the mountain have talked about breaking away from the county school system, and a group conducting preliminary research last year concluded that launching a separate school district seemed economically feasible for the municipality and would benefit the mountain’s schools academically.
A formal committee named Jan. 30 has been tasked with finding out if that’s true.
After an hour of debate, the Signal Mountain Town Council appointed seven community members from a pool of 30 interested applicants to investigate the feasibility of breaking away from Hamilton County Schools.
Mayor Chris Howley said the appointed committee – Susan Speraw, John Friedl, Tom McCullough, Thomas Peterson, Charles Spencer, Amy Wakim and Melissa Wood – is diverse.
The council voted 4-1 to approve the committee members, with Councilman Dan Landrum voting against.