By KATIE MCDOWELL/Managing Editor

Alabama Superintendent of Education Tommy Bice will decide the fate of the Shelby County Instructional Services Center building after both the Shelby County Board of Education and the Alabaster Board of Education expressed interest in the building.

“Both parties have not come to a full agreement on that,” Shelby County Schools Superintendent Randy Fuller said. “In that situation, when there is an impasse, the decision goes to the state superintendent.”

Fuller said the Shelby County Instructional Services Center, which is located in Alabaster, is “an annex of the central office” and about 60-70 staff members work in the building. Programs and departments fully or partially housed there include servers, tech center, professional development, guidance and counseling, gifted education program, career and technical education and some human resources services.

“It’s a vital part of the day-to-day operations of our school system,” he said.

Fuller said he expects Bice to make a decision on the building before the school year begins and likely in the next few weeks.

If the Alabaster Board of Education receives the building, the staff will remain with the Shelby County School System.

Alabaster City Schools’ first official day of operation was July 1. The Shelby County Board of Education approved the transfer of Shelby County employees who worked in Alabaster schools to the Alabaster Board of Education in its July 2 meeting in Columbiana.

During the split, the Alabaster Board of Education assumed ownership of Thompson High, Thompson Middle, Thompson Intermediate, Thompson Sixth Grade Center, Meadow View Elementary and Creek View Elementary schools.