New electronic message signs will be in place this fall at eight schools, including a replacement for one damaged last year at Emerald Ridge High School.

The message signs, commonly referred to as reader boards, will be installed by September 1 at Firgrove, Zeiger, Carson, and Shaw Road elementary schools, as well as at Ballou Junior High and Emerald Ridge High.

Woodland and Spinning elementary schools are projected to have their message signs installed and operational by October 1, said Director of Facilities Planning Brian Devereux.

 “Electronic message signs are a key form of communication with parents, students, and the community at large,” Devereux said. “There is an excitement in the school and in the main office when these message signs are installed on site.”

Schools chosen to receive the electronic message signs this summer were prioritized and evaluated for selection based on a set of common criteria, Devereux said.

This will be the first time, for example, that Carson Elementary has a message sign to communicate with parents, students, and the community.

The new electronic signs will replace ones that have messages posted manually by staff who stand outside, often during inclement weather, to attach letters one at a time to form words. Some of the boards are in such poor condition, Devereux said, that letters fall off not long after they are posted.

The electronic versions can be programmed from inside school offices and can be pre-programmed for upcoming event dates.

The signs must abide by city and county regulations, including hours of operation, Devereux said.

District leadership has been actively engaged with local city and county governments over the past four years in promoting local regulations to allow and preserve electronic message signage for schools.

The district set aside $150,000 from its general fund, which was combined with school Parent-Teacher Association donations, school building funds, or capital funds, to pay for the electronic message signs.