CHRISTIANSBURG -- At least 350 Montgomery County school employees think that school workers' children should attend schools here free, even if they live out of the county.

The Montgomery County School Board is not convinced and plans to gather more information before making a decision in the coming weeks.

"Is this going to open a Pandora's box?" board member Joe Ivers asked at Tuesday night's meeting.

In a Montgomery County Education Association survey submitted to the board, 66 percent of the 533 employees who responded said the tuition that out-of-district children are charged should be waived.

Twenty percent disagreed, the survey said. The rest said they did not have an opinion on the topic.

The tuition -- about $3,000 now -- is set annually.

Any student living outside the district can attend school in Montgomery County, provided space is available and payments are made. Currently about five children pay tuition.

Superintendent Tiffany Anderson said she expects to have to turn students away in the future and cited a near 100-student increase in the in-county student population every year as a reason against nixing all fees.

"There may be a floodgate of people coming in that we just can't absorb," she said. "We just want controls there because once you admit a student, they're there for 12 years."

She said she favors reducing the fee for employees, if any change is made.

Two Montgomery County teachers who live in Giles County and pay to send two children to Montgomery County's schools have asked for the change in fees.

One of those parents, Marcee Repass, told the board Tuesday to consider at least reducing the fee to $400 or lower to compare with what surrounding counties charge.

Still, Anderson said other counties may use the low tuition to attract students.

Board member Jamie Bond said she worried that parents, such as the Repasses, would want their children to attend schools where they work. That wouldn't always be possible, she said.

Board member Phyllis Albritton said she would be in favor of a reduction.

The board plans to review potential financial figures at an upcoming meeting but did not set a date. Typically, a decision on tuition is made before July 1.

The board's budget for 2008-09 includes about $10,000 generated from tuition. Assistant Superintendent Walt Shannon said if it were waived for current payees, it would not create a hardship on the school system.

Still, board members want to know more, and they still worry it could mean teaching more children with fewer dollars.

"It's the unknowns that bother me," Ivers said of the survey results. He said he'd rather know how many people would take advantage of the reduced costs before making a decision.

The Montgomery County Education Association forwarded the e-mailed survey to at least 2,500 school employees.

The school board knows where its employees live, but it has no way of knowing whether they have children.

The survey included 20 other questions about benefits written by the union's executive committee and suggestions to Anderson.

Association president Angie Cornett said nothing would be done with the rest of the survey until next school year.

In action Tuesday, the board:

n Approved an increase in the part-time employee benefits plan. Those employees will be eligible after two years, with nearly $351,000 in additional benefits budgeted for the employees.

n Approved the 2008-09 unused sick leave policy. Employees now will receive payments up to $5,000.

n Approved the 2008-09 academic and athletic supplemental salary scale.