Reminder: Highland bond issue is also on the ballot

We are so close to the election! Highland Schools is asking everyone to please vote in this election. We are running a $15 million bond issue for the school district. Your voice is important to us as we head into the future. Keeping our district with the best educators and the best infrastructure for our students are key priorities.

We believe our bond issue is designed to make a difference for as many students as possible. We believe it will make the district better not only for the students but also the staff. We want to add to our district to ensure these improvements help our students and staff but also give the community pride in our district as we work to move forward. The multipurpose facility is not only going to help our athletes — it will affect every student in our district. We use the main gym for so many activities. Musicals, dances, graduation, and various activities take away the gym from our classes and activities. The new multipurpose building will give the district options during times where the main gym needs to be used by other school groups. Alleviating that pressure helps our students still get access to a top tiered facility.

We are also excited to redo the elementary entrance to ensure a safer doorway for staff, students, and the community. This change helps make that area more efficient and helps with people entering the building. To rearrange the office area and the entrance helps make sure anyone who enters the building will pass through the office rather than being inside the building right away. We believe this is something the community would be supportive of.

The additional classroom/collaboration will open up space for the following programs: Music, English Language, Talented and Gifted, Special Education, Mental Health services, and our Instructional Coaches. Educational needs are ever evolving into more services for our students. We need space for private meetings, classroom meetings, or spaces for students and staff to collaborate with each other. Making this addition is about giving spaces for our professional staff to better serve our students.

Finally, we know changing the commons space at the high school and adding another locker room helps out our students in many ways. Our locker room space has overlaps and space issues. The need for another space helps students and makes sure we are providing the best facilities for our students.

Needs have changed in our district. The Facilities Advisory Committee met five times in late 2023 and early 2024 to come up with these projects. The key goal was to keep it tax neutral. Property taxes will not go up with this bond issue. This opportunity is extremely rare for a school district. I hope we can take advantage of this situation to better our school district for our students and staff. I believe this plan is a bold plan. But if the plan betters the district for our students and staff — I hope it is a bold plan people can appreciate. Thank you for your support!