Some schools in the Clark County district may get an eye-catching upgrade in the not-too-distant future.

School board members discussed Tuesday night the possibility of installing new marquee signs at Robert D. Campbell Junior High, Baker Intermediate, Shearer Elementary and Strode Station Elementary schools.

According to Administrative Director of Operations Donald Stump, the request for signs at the schools is not new.

“For a number of years we’ve had principals at these four buildings inquiring about whether or not we can support the funding of marquees, so we have just chosen to seek some pricing to get some general idea of what these (signs) may cost you if you decided to put them at these schools,” Stump said.

A list of quotes from local sign business Hammerhead Signs and Promotions listed various options estimated to cost between $24,000 and $32,000 based on variations like whether to have a full-color sign or amber-only or whether or not to build added wings onto the signs.

Stump said his department has also contacted Daktronics, a sign manufacturer that operates worldwide, to get estimates on how much purchasing the signs would cost.

He said the cost for amber signs would be about $17,000 and for color the cost would be $22,000. However, Stump added that the Hammerhead estimate includes installation while the board would need to bid out installation services if it decided to purchase the signs from Daktronics.

Stump said installing a marquee at Strode Station will likely be more expensive because the school currently does not have any form of signage, whereas the other other three have older signs in place.

When asked by Board Member Judy Hicks how high a priority these signs are to the district from an educational standpoint, Stump said the advantage of having the electronic signs is having an effective platform to communicate with students, staff and the community.

Stump said the signs would be wireless and could be controlled from the schools as well as the central office, enabling administrators to change the signs quickly if necessary or in the event of an emergency.

Board member Dr. Michael Kuduk said that putting amber marquee, the cheaper option, at the schools may be appropriate, but he said an argument could be made to put a full color sign at Campbell because of its location along a main roadway.

The board voted 4-1 to bid out the project, with Hicks voting in opposition.

Contact Seth at seth.littrell@winchestersun.com.