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Board to ask for new GCHS
Published 3/10/2008 in News : Area coverage
By EMILY BEHLMANN
ebehlmann@gctelegram.com
USD 457 voters will be asked at the November general election for approval of a bond issue that would, among other things, erect a single, larger high school to replace Garden City High School.
The Board of Education voted 4-3 Saturday to advance the plan, with opposing board members -- Mike Utz, John Scheopner and Bruce Reichmuth -- leaning primarily toward opening a second high school in the district instead.
The two ideas were the recommendations of a community committee that studied 10 options in the fall for alleviating high school crowding and administrative concerns about inadequate science and vocational labs, tight quarters in music rooms, and other issues.
According to GCHS Principal James Mireles, the building was constructed to house comfortably about 1,500 people, and its enrollment this year is 1,906.
Utz, the board's president, said that although he voted against the one-high-school plan, he and the rest of the board now should throw their support behind the proposal that will go on November's ballot.
With construction of a new high school, the vacated GCHS building could be used as a middle school, and buildings for grades could be shifted to provide more space and eliminate need for portable trailers, according to a plan developed by administrators.
A cost on the bond issue won't be determined until building plans are finalized, likely in late July or early August.
However, early estimates assembled by the district, with help from architect Stewart Nelson, put the overall plan at a maximum cost of $90 million to $95 million. The second-high-school plan, plus remodeling or expansion of several other schools to achieve other goals, would have cost between $80 million and $85 million, the preliminary estimates show.
The estimates are based on projected costs for 2011, which Superintendent Rick Atha said would be an aggressive date for project completion.
Community support
The board members who favored the one-high-school proposal -- Tom Blackburn, Jeff Crist, Gail Dunford and George Hopkins -- cited community support as one reason for their vote. Blackburn referred to a phone survey of 400 residents, conducted in January by DeSieghardt Strategic Communications, Salina.
It showed that 43 percent of respondents would "favor" or "strongly favor" replacing GCHS, while 33 percent would "oppose" or "strongly oppose" the idea. On the other hand, 37 percent said they would "favor" or "strongly favor" a second high school, while 46 percent said they would "oppose" or "strongly oppose" that plan.
The results, along with the knowledge that bond proposals to build a second Garden City high school failed in 1998 and 2000, led Blackburn to say "we're fighting an uphill battle" with a two-high-school proposal.
Dunford expressed agreement, despite the fact that USD 457 administrators had recommended two high schools as a better means of providing students with a good education.
"I'm not an expert on education, so I have to rely on you for information about how to make decisions I think are best for the community," she told administrators who were present Saturday. "But I need to listen to the community. ... My community is telling me the only way this is going to pass is with one high school."
In addition, keeping one high school in Garden City would allow the district to avoid increased operating costs that could come from keeping up both schools, Crist said. It also would allow the district to maintain the "plethora of activities" at GCHS, he said.
Other options
However, Scheopner argued that splitting students among two high schools would offer better opportunities for involvement with activities. Administrators in Andover, Lawrence, Olathe and Salina have cited an increase in participation when they added high schools to their districts.
Reducing school size also would allow students to have greater ownership of their school, and would enable stronger staff/student relationships, Utz said. Security would be easier to manage in a smaller school as well, he said.
Scheopner expressed doubt about the significance of the DeSieghardt survey results, reminding the board that the research had a margin of error of plus/minus 5 percent. Following community views based on a survey wouldn't be the best choice for students' education, he said.
"We were elected to this board to be leaders, not followers," Scheopner said.
Board members also discussed briefly on Saturday another option for alleviating crowding -- expanding the current GCHS facility.
This idea was among the 10 considered by the community committee, but the group cited several reasons for declining to recommend it: It fails to meet preferences for smaller school size, safety and security could be reduced with addition of more doors, it doesn't allow for widening of cramped hallways, and it likely would require use of eminent domain, a report said.
Yet Reichmuth said he thought a less expensive bond issue for expansion of GCHS would be more likely to pass than a proposal to build an entire high school. However, board members said they preferred to support an idea recommended by the committee.
Next steps
With a basic facility plan in place, Atha said the administration's next steps will be to discuss the proposal with district staff at voluntary meetings.
Also in the next few months, the board will have to hire an architect and a financial adviser to work on the bond, and determine a location for the proposed high school. Additional plans include gathering a committee of high school staff who can visit new high schools, possibly in Wichita and Kansas City, so the group can advise the architect.
According to a tentative timeline developed by Atha, building plans would be approved by late summer, when community committees would get to work on educating the public and promoting the bond.
Committees' responsibilities would include raising funds, promoting voter registration, speaking with community organizations, providing information to media, distributing propaganda like yard signs and brochures, and creating a petition of "yes" voters.
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