VERNON (KFDX/KJTL) — As Vernon ISD prepares for a $40-million bond on the ballot for the November election, they want to get out as many facts as possible about what changes it would bring for the community that currently has three separate elementary schools.
“We ask an awful lot of our parents in the morning from 7:30 to 8 a.m.,” Vernon ISD Superintendent Jeff Byrd said. “If you’ve got three children, there’s a possibility that they could be on three completely different campuses.”
McCord campus is for kindergarten and first, Central campus is for second and third and Shrive campus is for fourth and fifth grades.
The schools sit about two miles apart.
If the bond is passed, Central and Shrive elementary schools will be consolidated into a new elementary school, a plot of land the district already owns.
This came with community help; Byrd said they formed a facilities improvement committee with around 50 to 60 community members from all over Vernon.
“We took input from that group, and how are we going to get the biggest bang for our buck? What are our biggest needs of our district?” Byrd said.
The group identified those biggest needs: along with the new elementary school, the high school will also get a state-of-the-art media center built, making the school able to clear out the library for four new classrooms or additional cafeteria space.
“We don’t want to put a hardship on anybody, but at the end of the day, for our community to grow and be successful, we have to be progressive, and this is the district’s response to that,” Byrd said.
The tax impact on a $100,000 home would be an added $13.75 per month, or $165 annually.
Vernon ISD wants to take the next couple of months conducting town halls and getting all the information out there.
“We’re going to state facts, and we’re going to show people what our needs are,” Byrd said. “And hopefully the community, it’s something they can get behind and support. We want to inform them and be as transparent as we possibly can.”
The goal is making sure people know what they’re voting on and how it could advance Vernon ISD in the coming years.
Byrd added they should have the Vernon 2021 Bond website up and running shortly, so you can check with their Facebook for any information until then.