Editorial

Jackson schools look to the future

Jackson's sense of pride in its community, and particularly its schools, is almost palpable.

There are Jackson Indians bumper stickers, signs, T-shirts and whatnot everywhere in town. There's even a giant carved Indian at one of the busiest intersections: Hope and Main streets.

So it's not surprising that, in a school district of nearly 5,000 students, 300 parents would respond to a survey about what the school district is doing well and what it could improve. Yes, that's a remarkable return on surveys that require busy mothers and fathers to sit down, think and then fill out paperwork.

But Jackson is not blinded by its pride. While parents were quick to point out the good -- teachers, willingness of staff to work with parents and a wide variety of extracurricular activities -- they also pointed out what could be improved.

First, there's overcrowding. Some high school teachers have 30 students in a classroom, seated elbow to elbow. All would agree that's not as conducive to learning as a classroom where the teacher has room to move around and time to respond to 18 students' needs. That's the average population of a high school classroom in Missouri.

Second is the lack of technology. That concern could be tied to the aging buildings. Jackson High School principal Rick McClard said it's not just a matter of plugging in a new computer. The wiring is so old that it has to be reworked to accommodate any extra electrical equipment.

The oldest buildings on the campus were constructed in 1920, and officials admit that students are exceeding the capacity. Those buildings have a musty odor and water stains throughout. Some walls are cracked and crumbling, and some books have to be thrown away due to mildew and other damage from moisture.

There is hope for the situation, however.

An independent consultant produced three plans for the city and school district to work together and to build a community center and a combined city, regional and school library. The campus would go from a total of 185,000 square feet of building space to 250,000 square feet.

Of course, something eventually will have to be done about those 82-year-old buildings as well.

All of it will take community input, which began with a well-attended meeting Thursday night to go over the survey results and building plans. Superintendent Ron Anderson said he plans to open the high school to tours so community members can see for themselves what students there face each day.

Jackson residents would do well to avail themselves of these educational opportunities. It probably won't be long before they are asked to help financially in such endeavors, and they will need the facts to make a decision.

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