Springfield Public Schools will receive $50 million. Possibly.

   The district will acquire this money only if there is a 57 percent approval on the upcoming Nov. 3 ballot.

   Some public schools across Springfield are in dire need of repairs, electrical upgrades and remodeling.

   This bond will not increase Springfield residents’ taxes.  This is possible due to the available interest-free bonds through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.  Another factor is the district’s available debt service funds and its bonding capacity.  These together allow the district the possibility of accessing this amount of money without increasing taxes.

   The money will be put into a variety of projects and repairs to the schools in the district.

   Two and a half million dollars will be used to purchase and install Interactive whiteboards, LCD projectors and N-computing units in every school in the district.  

   “What I’m looking forward to the most is the possibilities in technology this bond will present,” Glendale’s Principal, Dr. Matt Pearce, said.  “New computers and whiteboards will stimulate learning more than the traditional pen and paper method.”

   The bond will also include $330,000 to include new lights on the properties of Glendale and Kickapoo High Schools.

   “The lighting will improve the safety of the grounds, especially at sport events,” said Dave Schmitz, Kickapoo Principal and High School Principal Representative on the committee for Better Schools for Kids.  “We hope to add light to the east parking lot where there is currently no form of lighting.”

   Besides new stadium lights, Glendale is also receiving $1.5 million for infrastructure and electrical upgrades and will be receiving new stadium bleachers.  The bleachers will allow for larger crowds at football games.  

   “I believe the stadium definitely needs renovations; the lights are dim and the bleachers are ratty,” said senior Evan Leake, captain of the varsity football team.  “The upgrades will cause a better overall football environment.”

   The electrical and infrastructure upgrades will provide more power output to run a higher number of computers and other electronics.

   More than $17 million will be used to fulfill the district’s promise of air conditioning all schools.  There are eight remaining schools to be air-conditioned.  These schools include Boyd Elementary, Jarret Middle, Phelps Center, Reed Middle, Robberson Elementary, Rountree Elementary, Sunshine Elementary, Tefft Center and York Elementary.

   Air conditioning the remaining schools will provide equality in the learning environments across the district. 

   “Every child deserves a healthy and happy learning environment,” said Lisa Langley, Better Schools for Kids organizer. “Hot temperatures in our schools cause students to be unable to concentrate.” 

   Other improvements include $7 million to Hillcrest High School for infrastructure upgrades and other construction projects;  $2.5 million will be used to construct a new gymnasium with a much larger court at Jeffries Elementary School.

   “[Jeffries Elementary] uses their undersized gymnasium for Physical Education and as a cafeteria,” said Gerry Lee, School Board President.  “They are so crowded right now they don’t have enough room to fit all their students into it.  Also, with the new gym there will be no conflict between P.E. and lunch.” 

   Nine million dollars of this bond will be used to retire the lease participation currently being used to construct the new Hickory Hills building.  This structure will create the necessary room for its students that the old building is currently lacking.

   The public seems to feel positive about most projects included in this bond, except for the extension of Westport Elementary into a K-8 building to accommodate Study Middle School students.  In extension to this project, the old Study building will become home to the district’s alternative programs.  

   Under this plan, 929 students will be enrolled in Westport K-8.  There have been accusations of multiple behavioral problems at Study, though the accusations were never substantiated.  Many believe that increasing the numbers of students will also increase the behavioral issue.  In addition, 80 percent of the students who will attend Westport are on free or reduced lunch.  

   Schmitz said he was not worried about the combination of schools, and explained research on 90-90-90 schools.  The title derives from the fact that 90 percent of the students are eligible for free or reduced lunch, 90 percent are members of ethnic minority groups, and 90 percent are meeting the district’s academic requirements.  

   “It’s a great opportunity for all of the students who will attend Westport,” Lee said.  “One K-8 school will allow students to remain in one building throughout eighth grade.  Also, having only one building will cause the parents to get more involved.”

   Another complication with the bill is that the district’s alternative schools will be completely shut down.  These schools include Pepperdine, Bailey and Berry.  

   Closing these schools appears to waste money the district has already invested in them.  But in all actuality, the district will save millions of dollars every year just by not air-conditioning these sites.  Also, the district plans on selling the property of the schools to rejuvenate the money invested in them.

   Another imperfection with the bond is that only some schools are receiving   extra construction attention.  Hickory Hills K-8, for example is receiving $9 million while Pershing, the other middle school that feeds into Glendale, is receiving no upgrades besides the standard technology upgrades. 

   Pershing is in equally bad shape as Hickory Hills in some aspects.  It has undersized classrooms and an extremely undersized gymnasium.

   “It’s not feasible to eat an elephant in one bite,” said Schmitz. “The list of facility needs is longer than we are able to meet.  We must make priorities and address other needs farther down the road.”

   Unfortunately, the voting numbers are down in the district’s area.  The average voting age in the district is 58, which could cause an assortment of problems.

   “The average voting age suggest that the parents of our students are not voting at the same rate as the older citizens,” said Schmitz. “The parents of whom this bond will benefit the most are doing the least.”

   In fact, only 66 percent of the district’s parents are registered to vote in Greene County. The statistics from just Glendale are even worse, with only 55 percent of its parents registered.  

   “To me, if you enhance the education of young people, the payoff is enormous,” said Pearce.  “Investing in our schools now will lead to a higher capacity of intelligent workers latter in life.”