Polk County candidates debate how to pay for new schools as performance concerns surface

Education and school construction dominated questions at a Polk County Republican forum as candidates wrestled with how to pay for new facilities while addressing recent poor performance at the county’s online program.

The forum moderator noted a recent Channel 3 report that Pila (PILA), the county-run online program, received failing scores for a second consecutive year. Stan Howard, who served on the Polk County school board, said programs such as PILA had helped retain students previously lost to homeschooling but acknowledged continued struggles and called for clearer measurable goals. “We have to identify the kids with special needs and get them caught up,” Howard said.

Robbie Hatcher, the incumbent county executive, told attendees the county’s role in school funding is constrained. “Whenever the money goes to the school system from the county side, we have no authority and we have no control over that,” Hatcher said, adding that the county contributes about $3.3 million under maintenance-of-effort rules and that building decisions remain with the school board.

Both candidates supported audits or reviews to identify savings, though they differed on scope: Hatcher pointed to frequent state audits of county accounts, while Howard said an independent audit could add useful oversight if not cost-prohibitive.

School-board candidate Tony Gins also spoke during the forum and made sharper accusations about district management, citing “a lot of waste” and alleging nepotism in central office hires. Gins said he would withhold support for a superintendent contract if he believed leadership was not correcting problems.

Why it matters: school construction and academic performance are linked—declining enrollment and low test scores complicate funding and long-term planning for facilities. Candidates agreed the county cannot shoulder major capital needs alone and will need cooperation with the school system and higher levels of government.

What to watch: how the county and school board reconcile capital plans with academic improvement metrics and whether any campaign proposals call for binding budget mechanisms or new local referendums.