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« Business Careers Awareness Program | Messages | 2008 AISD School Bond Election Update #2 »
by Julie Cowan, CBAC member, Anderson and Murchison parent
Dear Anderson High School vertical team parents and supporters:
Please read below to find out pertinent information regarding the school district’s decision to call an election for a bond package that would directly impact the facilities in the Anderson High School vertical team. The article is meant to educate you regarding specific renovations/additions that would occur at our schools, should the three propositions pass on May 10. In the weeks leading up to the election, I will share additional information and answer any questions that arise. Please do not hesitate to contact me with specific questions, as I am sure that many others share your interest. I can be reached at Jscowan@aol.com or 794-9389.
P.S. Election Day is Saturday, May 10. The last day to register to vote in this election is April 10, 2008. You must be 18 years old by May 10 to vote. Early voting takes place at selected sites from April 28 – May 6. Look for future articles to contain early polling places and FAQs.
The AISD Board of Trustees has called an election for May 10, 2008, to vote on three bond propositions for the school district. Any registered voter living within the AISD tax boundaries, meaning you live in a residence that pays property taxes to AISD, is eligible to vote. Eligible citizens must be 18 years old and registered to vote by April 10, 2008. Three city council member races and four AISD trustee contests will also be on the ballot that day.
As a brief reminder, in October, 2007, the Board of Trustees charged a group of community members (CBAC) with studying the need for a bond package that would address several immediate needs within the school district. The CBAC met many times in the four months that followed and spent hundreds of hours studying the issues before them. Considering the directives given to the committee, members used the following criteria when determining which projects to include:
-Meet building/health code requirements and safety changes
-Meet new high school graduation requirements for science and math (known as 4×4)
-Provide relief for schools currently at 125% of permanent capacity
-Replace building components subject to imminent failure
-Make building system improvements critical to energy efficiency and environmental responsivenes
In addition, the CBAC decided that the nature of the projects must
-Be urgent and important (cannot wait for a more comprehensive bond in 2-3 years)
-Take advantage of time-sensitive opportunities
-Have a minimal tax-rate impact
Most suggestions and information given to the CBAC came from district personnel. In addition, all AISD principals and PTA presidents received letters asking for their input.
After four months of study and two public hearings conducted by the CBAC, approximately $233.4 million worth of projects were recommended to be placed on the ballot and sent on to the AISD Board of Trustees, who then held three more public hearings. At their public hearings, they heard from many of the same citizens who spoke before the CBAC, but the Trustees were not tied to the same criteria that the committee imposed upon itself. Therefore, the Trustees were unencumbered to add items to the CBAC’s list of recommendations. The total bond that the Trustees are placing before the voters is $343.7 million.
Proposition 1: Relief for Overcrowding/Growth and Support for Academic Achievement - $187,797,315
Proposition 2: Health, Safety, Environment, Critical Renovations, and Other District Needs - $73,920,504
Proposition 3: Special Programs and Expansion - $82,000,000
One question that is regularly asked is “what is in the proposed bond for the schools in the Anderson Vertical Team?”
In Proposition 1, Anderson will receive four new science laboratory classrooms with an elevator. All of our vertical team schools, including Anderson, Murchison, Doss, Hill, Davis, and Summitt, will receive upgrades in technology hardware and systems such as wireless connections, mobile carts, a gradebook and student info programs, among many other items to enhance instruction and management.
In Proposition 2, Doss will have electric drinking fountains replaced to meet ADA code, have locking systems installed on doors to classroom pods, and have its condenser and multizone air-handling unit in the 300 wing replaced. Davis is having its moveable partition between the cafeteria and gym replaced. Hill and Murchison would receive new dishwashers. Summitt will have heat pump units replaced at the cafeteria, gym, and kitchen. Anderson will receive four additional tennis courts to bring the school up to district-wide standards and have selected air handling units replaced. Also in this Proposition, the Anderson vertical team schools would receive capacitor banks, a new requirement by Austin Energy that would improve and balance power demand and prevent the district from facing $2 million in additional charges. Low-emission diesel and two plug-in hybrid school buses, which would be purchased with Prop 2 funds, might also benefit our students, if they are put into service on our routes.
In Proposition 3, Anderson would receive twelve additional classrooms and have its overcrowded and unsafe fine arts wing renovated. All students from the Anderson vertical team could also benefit from a district-wide performing arts center (PAC).
Look for upcoming articles to address the following issues: the monetary value of the Anderson vertical team improvements, a list of early polling places, FAQs, and how you can be a part of the effort to support Austin’s school children.
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