Richmond County School Board Cancels Ellerbe Middle School Closure Study After Community Opposition

The Richmond County Board of Education voted 4-3 Tuesday to reverse a proposed closure study for Ellerbe Middle School. Community pushback drove the decision. Last month, officials approved a plan at the work session to examine shutting down the school and cutting costs.

Vice Chairwoman Bobbie Sue Ormsby motioned to rescind the study after talking with the board attorney. Ormsby, Scotty Baldwin, Jerry Ethridge, and Bess Shuler voted yes. Ronald Tillman, Chairman Cory Satterfield, and Daryl Mason voted no.

Residents filled the meeting room in Hamlet. Brett Webb, Olivia Webb, and Michael Puckett spoke during public comments. Brett Webb turned in a petition with over 1,200 signatures backing the school.

"There have been serious concerns about how this process has been handled," said Brett Webb, per the Richmond County Daily Journal. "What we are seeing is a plan built almost entirely around reductions, not on solutions. If the only path being explored is cutting, then we're not solving the problem— we're simply managing for decline."

Superintendent Dr. Joe Ferrell admitted there were problems with how he presented the proposal. Each year, the district spends about $1 million from its fund balance to make the budget work. That balance has dropped to just under $2 million. Through attrition, the district has cut nearly $2.9 million in positions over recent years.

Satterfield told board members to bring ideas for future study. "Our homework for next month is to bring back ideas to Dr. Ferrell about what types of studies we want to do," Satterfield said.