Why Lewisville Families should VOTE NO

First, let’s start by saying that I do think that LISD does need the money it is asking for, our children deserve the best we can give them, but I do not think blindly handing over ¾ of a billion dollars will best serve our students. Some of the money the school board is asking for is earmarked to be spent wisely, and I do not think any of us would argue that relief is not needed at Flower Mound, Marcus, and Hebron High Schools, new technology is always needed, a technology center would be nice in The Colony so their children don’t have to be on the bus all day, the current natatorium has issues that need addressed and even that Marcus HS is deserving of a stadium equal to that the other High Schools use on those all important Friday Nights!

However, to turn over $221 million for unnamed schools, to be built somewhere in our district, is not being good stewards of our money. (86.7 million for three elementary schools, 20.8 for five elementary additions, $107 million for two middle schools, and $9.9 million for two middle school additions) At least two schools in our district, Southridge in Lewisville and Morningside in The Colony are busting at the seams with portables and students, but the district can not promise them relief. We trusted the board with our money in 2005, and though they did very well deciding to rebuild Lakeland Elementary, I am disappointed that Independence will open at ½ capacity because the board drew the lines the suffice the parents in Castle Hills who refuse to send their children to a brand new school. They spent 20 million dollars on a school that will take years to fill, while the students and teachers at Morningside and Southridge long to be in a permanent building.

Next the board has come up with a wonderful idea to convert Milliken Center back to a middle school for the low price of only $13 million. After the update, Milliken will house 800 children. Where is Milliken? It is on the East side of I35 and 407, the old 9th grade campus, and before that the old Milliken Middle School. It was built in 1977 and has not been used as a school since 2005. It has almost no window, only in the doorways and the hallways, a small parking lot, oh and it is on the EAST side of the highway backed up to the lake, very convenient for most Lewisville residents.

Ok, great who will go there? Well, the 550 Delay children of course. Wait a minute, who goes to Delay right now? Some Southridge students (Corporate and Edmunds and it shares a parking lot with Durham MS) some Creekside students (across the street from Southridge) most of Central (Right next to Delay at Fox and I35) and most of Lakeland (Fox and Edmunds). So the great idea is to bus all the children from the south side of Fox to the north side of 407, very economical in this day and age. Don’t worry though; the state will pay for the busses because they are more than 2 miles away. So glad I don’t pay state taxes, oh wait, I DO pay state taxes.

Well that counts for the first 550 students, who will fill the next 250 seats at Milliken. College Street students for sure. From there, no one knows. The logical choice would be Valley Ridge, they are the closets, but then again, so is Highland Village and McAuliffe. ‘But we don’t go to LHS, our kids will go to Marcus”, is what Highland Village and McAuliffe parents have said to me. That is true; however, the district has never said they would not combine feeder schools at the elementary and middle school level. In fact, the brand new Killian Middle School does just that, ½ its students go to The Colony HS and the other ½ go to Hebron HS. Lines will not be drawn until the 2009-2010 school year to be in place for the 2010-2011 school year.

When I asked if had been considered to rebuild Delay, keep the kids in their neighborhood, I was given an astounding no. That would take too much money and too much time. I do not see how spending a few extra million (30 million for a new middle school vs. 13 to convert Milliken) is too much money. Think of the time alone the children would spend on the bus each day. The majority of families at Delay qualify for free or reduced school meals. Currently many students walk to and from school because it is the best option for them. They are close enough to walk home after athletics, band, and tutoring. These children and their families can not and do not have arrangements to get to and from a school that is in some cases 4+ miles away from their home to be involved in extra curricular activities without the help of extra school buses. When I asked the district about extra buses, I was told the same arrangements given to all other schools would be provided to the Milliken students.

I have also asked about redrawing all the lines to better align the middle schools, not possible. Most Delay students live closer to Durham, Huffines, and Hedrick Middle schools than they do to Milliken, but they draw the short straw, and are the ones to be bused out to the “new” school built in 1977.

Lastly, LHS is slated to be split yet again. While Flower Mound, Marcus, and Hebron will be taking advantage of the wonderful program that Killough North has built, LHS will be changing a system already working. There is no doubt that Killough North is a wonderful program, the best in the state, the shining star of LISD….or so the numbers show. Teachers, students and parents will argue the split has done nothing more than divide the campus and exclude ¼ of the student population. Now, instead of working to include them, the bond is going to exclude yet another grade. They will compete in athletics, UIL, and academics. We will have two 9th grade and two 10th grade sports teams, one JV and one Varsity team, one band, one JROTC and ultimately only one Valedictorian. I don’t know the right answer for LHS, but I know enough to understand no one knows the right answer for LHS and until answers are thought through and given to the parents we should not change a program that is working well enough to be the best in the state!

Not only are we going to put 9/10 on two separate campuses, the South location is not being built like all the other 9th grade campuses. It is being built to look just like Hebron HS. Why? So when the “next board” is ready to add a 6th high school, the building is already there, only the lines will need to be redrawn. When will we need a 6th high school? We don’t know, for sure if this bond passes, the building will be there.

The bond proposal gives some interesting information on enrollment as well. Their projected numbers say that in 2008, we will have a district wide enrollment of just over 50,000 students and in 2011 we will have about 55,000 students district wide. That is a fair estimate based on enrollment over the last several years. Now the interesting part comes when you compare these numbers to the task force report that estimates that the 9/10th grade population at LHS will grow by over 1000 students, 20% of the estimated growth for the entire district, in the same time frame. Right now all of LHS (9-12) is about 4000 students, but 2011, the task force is estimating the two 9/10 campuses alone to house over 4000 students. Their numbers for the needed expansion do not meet the numbers given for the entire district. Where does the board or the task force think 1000+ high school students are going to come from? Yes, we have some families moving in, and the middle schools are all full, but 20% of the growth for the district will be in one school? As John Stosal would say….Give me a Break!

Many administrators and PACK volunteers (those who have agreed to go around and present the bond on behalf of the board, i.e., the ones that want the money in the first place) will tell you we are afraid that state legislation will soon be forcing “rich” schools to give a portion of their bond money to the “poor” school. In essence Robin Hood taxes will be charged to our bond money. Though this could and quite possibly will be in our future, it can not happen until state legislation votes on it. They are not in session again until January 8, 2009. If they decide to enforce this new system, it will not happen until after January 8th. School bonds must be voted on during a regular civil election; which is why we are voting in May this year instead of October like the school board would have preferred. If we vote NO and the bond fails, the school board does have time to correct the bond, make it fair or ALL LISD students, tell us where they are wanting to spend the money and still get it on the ballot for the November election.

If the school board included the sites where new schools that will relieve Southridge and Morningside will be built, come up with a suitable plan for our middle schools, and give more details on how the split LHS will effect our children, I will happily support giving them ¾ of a billion dollars, until then I ask everyone to vote NO on May 10th. I have been told LHS feeder school parents have never turned out and voted for a bond election. I think it is our turn to let the school board know that we are paying attention, we do care and we do vote when it matters. Let LISD know we support our kids; we support ALL our kids….VOTE NO on MAY 10th!