A potential May bond election for Round Rock ISD could take place in 2014, as the district has several overcrowded schools and is in need of new facilities and improvement projects such as classroom additions and renovations at various campuses.
The board discussed and supported a bond study to assess district needs and growth at its Oct. 17 meeting. RRISD hired demographics and planning company Templeton Demographics to assist with the district's growth projection figures. Should the board decide to hold the election in May, it must call the bond election by Feb. 28, said Ramiro Flores, RRISD's deputy superintendent of administration.
"We keep talking about May 2014 and there is an important reason for that," board President Catherine Hanna said. "November 2014 is a board election—we've got five places up for re-election so it really might not be practical to have a bond election then."
She said if the board decides not to call a bond election for May 2014, it could consider May 2015.
The district has increased by 15,000 students in 13 years, which is about 1,000 new students per year, Flores said. For the 2013–14 school year, RRISD has three elementary schools that are at more than 125 percent capacity. Eight of its 10 middle schools are at more than 100 percent capacity. The potential bond election could include funding for an eleventh middle school and a thirty-fourth elementary school in the district to address overcrowding and accommodate future growth.
For more information about the district's future growth projections, view the presentation from the Oct. 17 meeting.
In other news
RRISD approved a process for replacing trustee Brian Sellers, who submitted his resignation to the board Oct. 11, citing the need to spend time with his family as his reason for leaving. The district is accepting applications online for the Place 1 seat until Nov. 1 at 5 p.m.
Applicants are asked to provide information such as a copy of their voter registration card, resume of qualifications and a statement of their philosophy on education and board service. Sellers will serve on the board until a replacement is chosen. The Place 1 term expires November 2014. Tentative dates for candidate interviews are Nov. 11–12 at 6 p.m.
The board approved the purchase of 14.2 acres of real estate for related facilities of the district's future high school. RRISD previously purchased 94 acres on A.W. Grimes Boulevard and Kippon Road for a future high school. The approval allows for the superintendent to to enter into an Earnest Money Contract with the owner of the property, the Avery Family Interest, to determine whether the property is suitable for the intended use by RRISD.
