The Board of Education met at Putnam County Elementary School for its work session on Nov. 6 to watch the Elementary Showcase and hear updates on tax exemptions.
The meeting began with Superintendent Eric Arena explaining the current tax exemption that freezes home evaluations at the age when a senior qualifies for senior homestead exemption.
“That exemption is for seniors in homestead and allows their homestead evaluation to be frozen. So, for instance, if they qualify to be a senior homestead and over the next four or five years, their assessed value increases they will be locked in at the original number their homestead evaluation initially was,” said Arena.
Arena then states that with the assistance of lawyers and a tax assessor, they have looked into the consideration of an additional tax exemption. If the assessed value of homestead for seniors is $100,000 or less, the senior would not have to pay any school taxes.
From $100,001 up to $250,000, that senior would only have to pay half of the school taxes. From $250,001 to $500,000, seniors would receive a 25% reduction on their school taxes.
“If that is what the board decides to do, we are talking about approximately 1,073 seniors in Putnam County that would be affected by this additional senior exemption,” said Arena. “That would be about 354 seniors that would not have to pay school taxes, 288 seniors that would only have to pay half, and 431 that would get a 25% discount on their school taxes.”
If the board chooses to do this additional exemption, they will approve the language of the exemption. Then it will be taken to the general assembly during legislation in 2024, and if it is approved through legislation, the voters of the community will vote on the exemption in November 2024. If that voting were to pass, the exemption would take effect in January 2025.
“This was put together in response to the meetings we invited the community to for discussion of tax exemptions for seniors. For many of us, myself included, the fact of the matter is that our millage rate is among the lowest of many counties in Georgia, however, with inflation some folks have lived here a long time and have been stressed by our current economic circumstances,” said Dr. Steve Weiner, chairman of the Board of Education. “It is the responsibility of all citizens to pay for the education of the next generation so this is designed to help those who need it the most. It is not intended to be a total exemption for senior homesteaders or an additional benefit for the wealthy.”
With that discussion closed, the meeting moved to the Elementary Showcase. With five presentations, Putnam County Elementary staff and students showed off what they have been working on so far this school year.
Teacher Amber Roberts and a few of her third-grade students showed how they have been learning about multiplication and paleontologists through archeology. They each showed off their multiplication projects created on a poster and designed around archeology and then conducted a ‘digging’ activity with the board members using chocolate chip cookies to represent rocks and a toothpick to represent their tools.
Then, Coach Trent McElroy and members of the Speed Stack Club demonstrated a variety of stacking methods to the board and taught board members how to stack and unstack the cups for each method. Speeding stacking is a competitive sport that involves stacking nine or twelve cups in pre-determined sequences as quickly as possible.
It can be an individual or team competition. The club has been meeting once a week since September and will continue to meet and practice through Dec. 9, according to McElroy.
Teacher Molly Reese and two of her computer science students led board members through a trivia contest using the SPLAT software. Students use this software to code and create a variety of games. The two students acted as the question readers while each board member represented a team. In the end, board members Carol Ann Guthrie and Doris Clemons tied. For the tiebreaker, Clemons won using scissors against Guthrie’s paper in a rock-paper-scissors contest.
Then, teacher Ciara Frazzitta and Coach Shaun Pope alongside students Emma and Mason talked about their experiences in Trail Blazers. Both students remarked about enjoying the field trips and being able to participate in multiple creative projects, like building their bluebird birdhouses.
Closing the showcase, music teacher Gavin White, alongside his third and fifth-grade classes, sang “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” and “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” to the board. Please scan the QR code to watch these two performances alongside the Speed Stacking Club’s demonstrations.
Scan this QR code for videos from Putnam Elementary’s presentation