JACKSON SCHOOLS PREPARE FOR MORE EXPANSION

JACKSON -- School officials are planning two expansions to help alleviate overcrowding caused by growth in enrollment and programs.

Voters would have to approve funding for any construction or major renovations in the Jackson School District, and the superintendent, Dr. Ron Anderson, said planners haven't looked that far ahead yet."There hasn't been any determination of when or what the scope would be at this time," he said.

Jackson School District enrollment is at a record 4,480 students, and the district has 300 teachers. The district has experienced an average growth rate of 3 percent annually since 1994, and there is no foreseeable end to the growth.

Anderson said the district is especially pressed for program and classroom space at the elementary and junior-high schools.

Preliminary planning for an addition to R. O. Hawkins Junior High began last year and should be largely completed by mid-December. Anderson said there is a shortage of classroom space. New classrooms, as well as an expansion of the kitchen area and other renovations, have been included in plans for the building.

Said Anderson: "The gifted program has not expanded to the junior-high school but needs to, and the expansion of the computer lab, which didn't exist previously, is taking up more space. The special-services program also is growing."Jackson already has seven public elementary school buildings, including South Elementary, which opened just last year. However, North Elementary School near Fruitland is completely full despite a new addition to the building two years ago, and current enrollment and growth trends indicate a new building also is needed in the eastern region of the district. School officials are looking within the city limits for a possible site for a new school, which would require at least 15 acres of land. "It's in the preliminary planning, but it's not as far along as the junior high," Anderson said. "It's something that is certainly needed and that will have to be on a fairly fast track."The need for new construction is not new to the school district. School officials have kept close watch on building capacities in recent years.

Anderson, who was hired in January, was formerly superintendent of Liberty School District near Kansas City. That district experienced similar growth while he was there.