News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Voters in the November 7 election turned down a $5.5 million bond request by a 58 vote margin. The bond proposed that $3.5 million be spent to add eight new classrooms to the elementary school and to remodel the old intermediate school for seventh and eighth graders.
The additional $2 million was to fund fencing, field irrigation, school labs and maintenance projects.
In a workshop session with members of the schools' Long Range Planning Committee on November 28, the school board discussed presenting a bond to voters again in March or in May.
If they do, members agreed, the board must clearly endorse year-round education for the elementary and intermediate schools.
"It seems to me that by spending $3.5 million at the elementary site, we're irrevocably committed to year-round education on that site," said board chairman Bill Reed. "I don't think we should set (the issue) aside. I think we should deal with it up front."
Leslee Bangs, chair of the Long Range Planning Committee, reminded the school board that the bond was part of the committee's 10 year plan, which called for the development of a year-round calendar.
"The 10 year plan doesn't work without YRE in it," Bangs said. "It just doesn't."
The school board approved the 10 year plan at its June 12 meeting, but at the same meeting Reed stated that adoption of the plan did not mean that the school board was endorsing year-round education.
Board members and planning committee members agreed that the board's position on year-round education must be clarified before a bond issue can once again be brought before the voters.
"The issue is, does the school board endorse YRE," said planning committee member Jim Knapp. "If it doesn't we shouldn't be out there endorsing the bond."
Reed said that if the district doesn't go to year-round education, they should not spend the $3.5 million at the elementary school. Reed argued that, in that case, the money should go toward building a new middle school. Reed said that the possibility of building a middle school four years from now has not been adequately explored.
Bangs said that the Long Range Planning Committee had thoroughly explored the possibility of building a middle school and determined that, even if the board could pass the approximately $9-$12 million construction bond, under current state funding practices, the district would have no money to operate the school.
That, she said, was why the committee submitted the 10 year plan calling for additional classrooms and year-round education at the elementary school.
Board member Harold Gott expressed concern about asking voters to reconsider something they already turned down.
"I'm still working through in my mind the whole issue of resubmission, period," Gott said.
He argued that voters had concerns besides year-round education and that, if a new vote was to be successful, the board must give the voters a better idea of what they are agreeing to pay for.
"If we can't tell voters what they're going to spend their money on, maybe we ought not to ask for it," Gott said.
Gott said any new bond proposal should itemize specifically how the proposed $2 million maintenance portion will be spent. And, Gott agreed, the board must get behind the concept of year-round education and tell voters "it has good academics behind it and it has good economics behind it.
"It's not a perfect solution," Gott said, "but it's the best solution that we can do."
The school board will soon decide whether or not to resubmit the bond proposal to the voters. The issue is on the agenda for the school board's December 11 meeting.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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