The recent economic downturn is forcing officials to rethink their future school building improvement plans. Since the school system first started looking at possible building renovation and construction possibilities, the economy has taken a turn for the worst.

Officials are taking a closer look at Madison County schools’ drop in enrollment. As of the tenth day of school earlier this month, the student population at all four Madison County Public Schools totals 1,812 – almost 30 students less than expected, according to Superintendent Brenda Tanner.

Anticipating more state budget cuts, Madison County school officials are working to further slim spending. In August, Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine announced that the state’s income estimates are much lower than expected, requiring further reductions to the state’s overall budget, according to recent reports. Although specific funding decreases have not yet been released, Kaine said that money for kindergarten-12th grade schools will likely be reduced, Madison County Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Tanner told the school board at its regularly scheduled Sept. 8 meeting.

New Madison County average SAT test scores released last month show double-digit decreases in all three subject areas from last year. Average SAT scores for Madison County High School Class of 2008 students were 497 in critical reading, 22 points below last year’s average; 501 in math, an 18-point decrease; and 495 in writing, down 16 points.

Once again, all four of Madison County’s schools satisfied federal academic benchmarks – although as a division, the school system did not. The Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) requirements, which were established by the federal No Child Left Behind Act in 2001, are based on participation and achievement of students on state Standards of Learning tests and the high school graduation rate. The recently released results are based on the 2007-2008 school year.

Brightwood resident Penny Toliver first moved to Madison County more than 20 years ago for the community’s “family atmosphere.” But over the years, she’s watched this “atmosphere” start to change, she said. The parking lot of a fast food restaurant and convenience store complex in downtown Madison is one spot where unsupervised youth often congregate and cause trouble, according to Toliver.

News that Russian troops had invaded the republic of Georgia hit home for Madison County residents Michael and Melissa Martin. In 2006, the couple opened their Locust Dale residence to Dodo Gotsiridze, an exchange student who came to Madison from Georgia, an eastern European country in the former Soviet Union. During her yearlong stay, Dodo, now 19, became “like a daughter to us,” Melissa Martin told The Madison County Eagle during an Aug. 18 interview.

A judge knocked 10 years off a jury’s recommended 35-year sentence for a Madison County Public Schools fill-in school bus driver convicted of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old friend of his daughter.

School resumes for Madison County public school students Aug. 20. The Eagle gives an overview of what the new school year has in store for students, plus follows with a complete list of Madison County school bus schedules.