As Cobb County School District officials prepare to call for a referendum this fall that would extend the education sales tax—known as Ed-SPLOST—some members of the Sprayberry High School community are advocating for a new campus.
They’ve been meeting with community members in recent weeks to organize for a rebuild of the current campus at Sandy Plains Road and East Piedmont Road.
They want a complete overhaul to be included in the next SPLOST collection period—which would start in 2024—more than 50 years after the school moved to its present location.
“They’ve done a good job in keeping it up,” community leader Shane Spink said, referring to the school district. “But it’s almost 50 years old.”
He said Sprayberry principal Sara Griffin has submitted a request for a rebuild to the Cobb school district, which is in the process of collecting requests from all schools.
SPLOST revenues pay for facilities projects, maintenance and technology upgrades.
Later this spring, the Cobb Board of Education is expected to finalize a project list for what would be the Cobb Ed-SPLOST VI.
Superintendent Chris Ragsdale announced in March that he would be seeking a SPLOST extension with a November referendum that must be called for by the school board.
On Tuesday, Spink, of the Sprayberry Area Residents Coalition, and other leaders in the school community met with citizens this week to urge them to push for a rebuild.
The group has set up a Facebook group, “Rebuild Sprayberry High School” and will be holding a rally at the school (2525 Sandy Plains Road) on Monday at 6:30 p.m.
Sharona Sandberg, who heads up the Sprayberry Orchestra booster club, runs the Sprayberry PTSA’s annual craft fair and leads efforts for a community pantry in the area, said other East Cobb high schools have undergone major facilities upgrades, while Sprayberry has been neglected.
“My fear is if we don’t create a bit of a stink about this, we’re going to get passed over again,” said Sanderberg, whose son is a junior at Sprayberry.
Like Spink, a Wheeler graduate, she attended high school nearby, at Marietta High School, and is a fierce advocate for the community she now calls home, and where she is raising her family
“Sprayberry was considered the country school,” she said, referring to Sprayberry’s status as the oldest high school in what is now known as East Cobb.
Sprayberry initially opened in 1952 on what is now Cobb Parkway, and in space currently occupied by The Walker School, and is named after a former Cobb school superintendent
When it moved to its present campus in 1973, Sprayberry High School had what was regarded as a modern campus on one of the busiest corners in East Cobb.
A couple years later, Walton High School opened, as East Cobb began a rapid suburbanization that included the addition of Lassiter, Pope and Kell high schools.
In recent years, Walton and Wheeler have undergone complete rebuilds, while Pope has a new theatre and gymnasium. In early 2019, Lassiter christened a new gymnasium and also boasts a major performing arts center.
“Now, it just hasn’t been elevated as high,” Sandberg said of Sprayberry.
She said the current building has issues with mold, falling ceilings and other signs of age.
“It’s just yuck, it’s just old,” Sandberg said. “It looks like the 1970s. If you live in this community, you want to be proud of your school.”
Cobb school board member David Chastain, who represents the Sprayberry cluster, sympathizes, saying “it’s time to address some of the issues.”
The district is just getting SPLOST VI proposals, however, and “it’s a little early to be having a public discussion” about specific requests, he said.
“Sprayberry needs to get some love,” said Chastain, also a Wheeler graduate.
The current Cobb Ed-SPLOST V includes rebuilds of Osborne High School and major renovations in the South Cobb area. A rebuild of Eastvalley ES and a new sports complex at Walton are also to come from the current SPLOST funding.
Chastain wouldn’t speculate about whether Sprayberry is likely to get a full rebuild, but “I know there needs to be a lot of work.”
Spink has been heavily involved in efforts to redevelop the blighted Sprayberry Crossing Shopping Center at the same intersection.
He’s also the father of a Sprayberry 11th grader and has two younger children in the Sprayberry cluster, and believes a new high school campus may be just as important in uplifting the community.
“I could have gone over to Pope or Walton,” he said. “We’re trying to change this community and fight to make it better.”
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