The reasons for Tuesday’s election at College district

By Randy Bauer

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On Tuesday, voters of the College Community school district will be asked to authorize the issuance of $15 million in bonds to finance the construction of a new elementary school building. I want to provide information for voters' consideration.

The building would be located on the College Community campus in southwest Cedar Rapids on land that was originally purchased for school sites and is currently used for youth recreation. The youth recreation will be relocated to another area of the campus and will be available for use in the spring of 2013.

In the fall of 2003, a citizens task force consisting of 53 people was created to study the enrollment of the district and make recommendations to the school board.

Among the recommendations was the construction of a grades 7-9 building, which is the Prairie Point building and has been occupied by students since 2009; the construction of a fine arts facility, the Prairie Concert Hall, which was completed in 2009; and the construction of a new elementary building in the 2012-14 time frame, assuming enrollment growth continued. Additionally, the district's task force reaffirmed the central campus concept including a recommendation for the procurement of additional land while it is still available.

With that as a backdrop, a Citizens Advisory on School Facilities (CACSF) was convened in January to study current enrollment, class sizes and projections. The CACSF recommended to the school board to construct a new elementary building. On Jan. 30, the school board unanimously approved the recommendation and set the election date.

College Community school district is the fourth-fastest growing school district in the state. In 1990 there were 2,433 students enrolled, and by 2010, enrollment had reached 4,832. By 2020 we are projecting enrollment to exceed 5,600 students!

Our average K-4 class size has also increased, from an average of 20.4 students to 24.8. Without additional classroom space, class sizes will continue to increase in proportion to enrollment. There are no unused classrooms remaining.

If the bond issue is successful, one of the questions voters have is “how will this bond election impact my taxes?” The district has determined that between growth in our property tax base and a reduction in the cash reserve levy, there will be no increase in the tax rate. In fact, we are estimating that the 2012-13 rate will be slightly lower than the current levy.

Many of the questions that I receive are on open enrollment. I'd like to set the record straight. Open enrollment has been closed at College Community for a number of years. However, College Community still has open-enrolled students.

We have open-enrolled students because state law says we must continue to allow students to open enroll in our district under certain conditions. Students who have been residents of the district but have opted to move to another district can open enroll back into College Community; this is called the continuation law. In addition, younger siblings of those who are open enrolled are also allowed to open enroll. This is the only open enrollment that College Community has allowed.

Eligible voters may vote between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. at Prairie High School, Ely Public Library, Fairfax Public Library or the Swisher Legion Hall, whichever location is most convenient.

Randy Bauer has been president of the College Community school district Board of Education since 2003 and has served on the board since 2000. Comments: rbauer@prairie

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