On Tuesday, July 30, Putnam County Superintendent John Hudson presented a proposed bond and associated finance plan to the State School Building Authority in a Special Telephonic Meeting.

The funding plan, requiring $49,870,000 (66.61%) in local bond funds and a future SBA Needs grant of $25,000,000 (33.39%), was the result of the Putnam officials working with the SBA staff. Executive Director Andy Neptune recommended that the Authority approve request to include the SBA as an identified source of funding for the bond projects, contingent upon successful passage of the proposed bond election and final approval by SBA of the project and plan.

The SBA must approve funding at a meeting following the passage of the bond issue to be a funding source. The SBA Needs grant funding portion would be used for the construction and completion of a new Hurricane Middle School ($25 million). The $49.9 million authorized by the bond would include significant athletic facility improvements to Winfield High School, Poca High School, Buffalo High School, George Washington Middle School, Winfield Middle School, and Poca Middle School.

Putnam voters last approved a school bond on August 29, 2009. The 2009 bond issue was for $56,750,000 and provided funding for new middle schools at Poca and at Winfield. That issue authorized an interest rate of 6.75% for the 15-year bonds.

Plans call for the new Hurricane Middle to be located on the Henderson property adjacent to Hurricane High School. The Board of Education purchased the Henderson property in 2009.

Enrollment at Hurricane Middle has dropped from 1,013 in 2017 to 837 in 2023. Feeder schools for HMS are Conner Street, Hurricane Town, Lakeside, West Teays, and Mountain View. Enrollment at these elementary schools was 1,720 in 2023, down from 1,837 in 2020 which year served as a driving force for Hurricane Middle’s current 837 students. The enrollment in Putnam County schools was 8,806 last year and has decreased by more than 900 students since 2016.

The following table summarizes Putnam County School enrollment for the last eight years.