Facilities Goal Update & Invitation to "Circle Back" with ARCON
Dear District 30,
Our work on our Master Facility Plan continues. To create the District 30 Master Facility Plan, ARCON has updated the physical assessment and has completed the educational assessment of our facilities. Thank you to everyone who helped by participating in the survey and assisting with the tours, focus groups, design workshops, and observations that were completed by our architects, ARCON, and their educational consultant, David Jakes Design.
What follows is an update on our findings and information on next steps, including an invitation to a "Circle Back" meeting with our architects on Wednesday, September 28, at 3:45 p.m. at Maple School’s MPR.
Educational Facility Assessment Findings
This intense and comprehensive analysis generated many drivers, findings, and considerations for each District 30 facility:
- Drivers - D30 Spaces Should Provide:
- An invitation to learning
- Opportunity for exploration
- Physical & intellectual safety
- Transparency in learning
- Integrative opportunities
- Adaptive options for different styles of learning
- Comprehensive space
- A Catalyst for inquiry & creativity
- An opportunity for play
- A celebration of learning
Educational Assessment Findings:
- You are out of space
- Your spaces present a limited invitation
- Your spaces require constant negotiation
- Your spaces are limiting
- Your spaces could be aligned more effectively
- Your spaces could support all learners more effectively
- You lack engaging outdoor spaces – especially at Maple
The recent faculty survey put a quantitative face on our teacher’s perceptions of our facilities. A few highlights include:
90% (87 individuals out of 97 respondents) and 88% (37 out of 42) at Maple agreed or strongly agreed that creating more capable learning spaces would have a significant impact or completely change how students learn.
18% (17 out of 97) and 7% (3 out of 42) at Maple agreed or strongly agreed that our current spaces reflect our values and beliefs about how we want to educate the children of our community.
13% (13 out of 97) and 0% (0 out of 42) at Maple agreed or strongly agreed that our current spaces are equitable, and all users (students and teachers) generally have access to the space resources they need.
73% (71 out of 97) and 86% (36 out of 42) at Maple agreed or strongly agreed that our current spaces limit how our teachers create learning experiences.
89% (86 out of 97) and 86% (36 out of 42) at Maple agreed or strongly agreed that new or remodeled spaces would allow the creation of more innovative learning experiences.
Identified Educational Facility Considerations
Our Facility Goal Steering Committee has met two times to help inform our considerations and options to address our needs. This work will help our administrative team prioritize our considerations as we update the District 30 Master Facility Plan.
Staff “Circle Back” with ARCON
The above information will continue to evolve. If you are able, please plan on joining ARCON’s “Circle Back” Meeting on Wednesday, September 28, at which ARCON will share more specifics about the above considerations to make sure that the highest priorities are accurate and complete. This meeting will be held at 3:45 p.m. in the MPR at Maple.
What’s Next?...Citizens’ Task Force Convenes
Once we have a prioritized master facility plan, the Citizens’ Task Force will help clarify communication of our issues, and define a potential solution they believe the community will support. Our community will then receive information about our needs, and they will be surveyed. These results will help inform our Citizens’ Task Force, which will tentatively make a recommendation to our Board of Education on how to proceed at our December 8, 2016, Board Meeting.
Funding of Our Priorities
As we have discussed, District 30 is debt free and the Board of Education has proactively built up our fund balance to help respond to maintenance needs. Our fund balances have been used to fund $4.1 million in maintenance needs over the past three years. The Board has discussed considering another $3 million to $5 million toward this effort from existing fund balances. In addition, the Board could responsibly issue about $10 million in debt (which would not require a referendum).
Therefore, if our facility priorities come in between $13 million to $15 million, the Board can decide to fund those without a referendum. On the other hand, if the facility priorities we pursue at this time require more than $15 million, District 30 Board would need to seek a building bond referendum. For your information, a building bond referendum generates additional funds that will be paid by the community over the next twenty years without utilizing our ongoing operating funds.
After entering into this thorough process, I am even more convinced that this effort to create a long-range facility plan is among the most important areas of need for District 30 at this time. Please remember that identified facility options that respond to our Master Facility Plan may not all be addressed at one time. However, our district is creating a roadmap for the future. What the community will support at this time will become apparent as we complete our engagement process.
Thank you for again for actively providing your insights into this important work and have a wonderful weekend. Please know that my door is always open if you have questions.
Sincerely,
Brian
Dr. Brian K. Wegley
Superintendent of Schools
