LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: TAKE TIME, STUDY JACKSON NEEDS

To the editor:

On Aug. 8 the voters will decide the fate of the 10-cent bond levy and the 40-cent operation levy increase proposed by the Jackson School District. When considering the 10-cent bond levy increase, I believe it is important to look at the facts available from Board of Education documents.

I want to put the current enrollment at the junior high school in perspective. The chart shows actual or projected enrollment at the junior high from school years 1989-90 through 2004-05. The completion of the middle school caused the large enrollment decline in 1995-96.

Current average class sizes at the junior high are well within state guidelines of 28 students per class as most desirable and 33 students per class as the largest acceptable over the long term. This does not mean the building is fully satisfactory.

My point is this: For many years the enrollment at the junior high school has been high, at times higher than desirable. To the credit of students, parents and teachers, our educational results have been award-winning, and everyone survived. It does appear that we will need to make changes related to the educational opportunity for our junior high students. Yet we have the time to make a thoughtful decision before we spend $5 million.

I believe we should take 10 to 12 months to hire a consultant to help us determine the best future for our elementary, junior high and senior high facilities. Perhaps such a study would show that construction of 10 to 12 classrooms at the junior high with provision for further expansion makes more sense than just adding 18 classrooms now. With this approach, we would get more effective use of our tax dollars and the best education for our children in the long-term future.

TOM O'LOUGHLIN

Past-president

Board of Education

Jackson, Mo.

R.O. HAWKINS JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL ENROLLMENT

89-90, 753

90-91, 788

91-92, 847

92-93, 866

93-94, 902

94-95, 902

95-96, 633

96-97, 657

97-98, 713

98-99, 700

99-00, 748

00-01*, 782

01-02*, 727

02-03*, 726

03-04*, 794

04-05*, 840

*Projected

Source: Tom O'Loughlin