*This is the third part of the community update held by the Friends of the Library on Thursday, Jan. 26.
One of the hottest topics in Choctaw County right now, is the new football stadium. The new Charger stadium will be where the old children’s park, amphitheater, and tennis courts were at Tom Glasgow Park. The Choctaw County School District purchased the park from the Town of Ackerman and the town is in the process of building a new park on Highway 15 near the American Legion building behind the Community Center.
Blaine said the stadium will be like one on a college campus. He said one of the new perks of the stadium is instead of someone walking through while you’re cheering on the Chargers, there will be a walkway that will be built between the seating. Gone are the bleachers that hurt when a person sits on them too long, there will be chairbacks.
He said at the concession stand, there will be seating so you can sit down and enjoy before returning to your seats.
“It’s going to be a place where kids can sit and hang out,” he said. Blaine said before sometimes the sideline football game is better than the actual game.
Also, instead of the band being in one section of the bleachers, at the new stadium the band will have its own set of bleachers.
“The grass space will be limited. We want them in the bleachers sitting by their parents,” he said.
“We were asked as to why we’re going with turf. They’re have been studies done on turf,” he said. Blaine said turf can help to decrease the number of injuries. He also said the turf can also e used by more than just the football team. He said the band can utilize the field also, which is a drastic change from their practice space.
He said the turf will have the CC logo and the designer designed part of the turf to have the shape of the county.
Blaine said band members would have to wear boots and wade through dew and deep grass to practice.
“We’re excited about it,” he said. Blaine said the targeted date for the stadium to be completed is 2024.
“Dale, you said y’all are aiming for 2024 that’s what we’re aiming for as well,” he said. Blaine said they’ll be able to have spring games and graduation at the new stadium.
He also talked about the new learning center, which is the old Regions building.
“The Sheriff’s department just used it for training,” he said. Blaine said it’s a space that can be utilized not just by the school, but for other entities as well.
He walked those in attendance through a picture slide show of what the old Regions looked like and what’s now the new learning center.
Blaine also said there’s a new art program at Choctaw County. He said the district now offers Art I at the high school and next school year, the district plans to offer Art II.
“When they leave Art I, they have to go somewhere,” he said. “So, we’re not offering Art II.”
He said the district also plans to offer Advanced AP Art, which will follow Art II. Blaine said when a child has a creative outlet, they tend to do better in other areas of their academics.
He also said that the passing rate for first grade has now changed to an 80. Blaine said when it was 75, they discovered that children were just squeaking by and when they took the reading gate in the third grade, they struggled. And, they weren’t really learning to read, they were only doing enough to pass. He said that began showing up in the third grade.
He said after doing a study, they decided to raise the passing grade.
“Now, I got parents made at me. ‘You mean to tell me my child has to be on honor roll to pass first grade, well, yeah,” he said. He said the goal is that it makes the first and second grades, when they reach the third grade, more successful.
“Even the fourth grade math test is all about reading,” he said.
Blaine said a lot of the things that were taught in school dropped down or changed. He used the example of previously first graders learning how to use an analog clock. “They aren’t ready to learn how to tell time, it’s too large for them,” he said.
“Now, they learn how to do that in the second grade,” he said. Blaine said now in fifth grade, they’re doing things he learned in the seventh and eighth grade.
Blaine said they’re still seeing the effects of COVID-19. He said when COVID-19 took place, the students who were in the Kindergarteners through second grade took the biggest hit because they weren’t in school and then they were in school sporadically. He said that hurt, and it’s not just something Choctaw County is dealing with, it’s all over the state. But they’re working to overcome it.
He was also asked about the behavioral issues at the high school. Blaine said they do everything they can to intervene and keep a student in school. But it’s up to them. He said if a student has to be expelled and there are levels a student goes through before that happens, it’s for a calendar year and they give the parent options they can do to help the child to continue to learn.
