RAVENNA, Neb. - A Central Nebraska School District is proposing a bond project which will go towards upgrades that officials say will make the school safer and more modern.
The Ravenna Public School District is asking residents to vote in March on a proposed bond aimed at improving the school’s facilities, with a focus on safety, inclusion and modernizing learning spaces.
The targeted areas include the career, agriculture, and technical education classrooms in addition to a new weight room and improved special education facilities. 
The proposal also includes the construction of a central, more secure entrance for students which will greatly limit the travel between buildings during the school day.
Ravenna Superintendent Ken Schroeder says about 150 students travel back and forth several times a day between the main building and detached classrooms.
He said the entrance and construction is a priority because "if we're having any type of a situation where there might be an unwanted guest on the grounds and we need to secure our perimeter it's a lot more functional to do that if we're all under one roof and we don't have that separation between the current north buildings and the main building.”
Schroeder says residents would likely see a slight decrease in the school district's tax levy rate for the first year after the bond passes.
The district’s levy rate is expected to drop from 71 cents to around 68.8 cents due to the removal of funds from certain accounts used for building improvements.
 

The Archuleta School District (ASD) Master Plan Advisory Committee (MPAC) recently discussed the pros and cons of a major renovation versus constructing a new building for the district’s master facilities plan.

Representatives from RTA Architects, as well as ASD Superintendent Rick Holt and MPAC chair Lisa Scott, facilitated the most recent committee meeting held on Monday, Feb. 24, in which committee members discussed in groups the pros and cons of either a major renovation or a new construction project.

Scott clarified that the MPAC is an advisory group, and that the ASD Board of Education will make the final decision as to what the district will pursue in terms of a renovation or new construction project and the appropriate funding needed.

“We are an advisory committee to the school board,” Scott said, explaining the committee’s purpose through the end of this spring is to “understand the status of our school facilities and the options for … remedies. These buildings are old — doesn’t mean they’re horrible — but we do seriously need some remedies.” 

INDIANAPOLIS - Indianapolis Public Schools is calling for a moratorium on new schools as state lawmakers advance legislation that would force the district to share property tax revenues with dozens of charter schools.

The statement from the school board last week also calls for a limit on the ability of authorizers to allow new charter schools to open — by only allowing the Indianapolis mayor’s office to give new charters the green light. Right now, seven authorizers have the power to let new charters open in Indianapolis.

“There is no way to create a sustainable system if the number of schools within the IPS boundary continues to grow,” the school board said in its Friday statement. “For at least the next two years, as we work toward a collective community vision, no new schools should open. We do not need more schools.”

The demand came shortly after the Indiana Senate passed Senate Bill 518, which would require the district to share revenues from property taxes and referendums as early as 2026. The bill compounds the long-term pressure on IPS — where enrollment declined by over 3% this year — and has led IPS officials to publicly lament the new charters officials have allowed to open within IPS borders. Combined with proposed property tax caps, IPS has said the legislation would force it to close schools.

Charter advocates, however, oppose such a moratorium on new schools and object to changes to restricting authorizing power for now.

White Bear Lake High School junior Lauryn Belz said she and many of her fellow students don’t feel safe at school, citing numerous lockdowns at schools throughout Minnesota.
“As a student, I believe that it is of the utmost importance that students feel safe in their schools,” she said, calling for funding to create safer school environments.
Rep. Elliott Engen (R-White Bear Township) believes the Legislature should be protecting the safety of all students and school officials. He’s calling his bill, HF15, the "Safe Haven In Every Local District (SHIELD) Act."
“We are talking about something that is really meaningful, and it is a generational impact. And I think that what you’re doing here to protect kids is important,” said Rep. Heather Keeler (DFL-Moorhead).
The House Education Policy Committee approved the bill, as amended, on a voice vote Wednesday and sent it to the House Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee.
The SHIELD Act, in part, would fund the commissioner of public safety to issue school security grants to school districts and charter schools for the purpose of installing comprehensive, multilayered and integrated security systems, including an evaluation of a school’s current security systems, and training for school staff on using the security systems.

Proposed school closures and consolidations at Pittsburgh Public Schools gained the administration’s formal blessing in a feasibility report delivered Tuesday evening.

The report, presented by Superintendent Wayne Walters and other administrators, backs nearly all of the proposals recommended by consulting firm Education Resource Strategies [ERS] in a plan to realign the school’s resources that drew strong backlash in the fall. Key recommendations include changing the current school grade configurations to a traditional model of K-5, 6-8 and 9-12 grades and closing 14 schools, including 10 building closures. 

“Schools with low enrollment often struggle to sustain a broad and enriching experience, limited access to essential academic and extracurricular programs such as music, art, world, languages and career exposure,” said Walters. “And this disparity means that not all students are receiving the same high-quality education and opportunities simply because of the structure of their school.”

Voters in the Wichita school district have a big decision on Tuesday: whether to approve a $450 million bond issue to modernize schools. The bond issue would pay to rebuild seven elementary and middle schools, close four elementary schools, convert two elementary schools to K-8 buildings and consolidate alternative school programs, among a number of other items.
We asked Eagle readers what they wanted to know about the bond issue. Here are the most commonly asked questions and answers. What is proposed? The district would demolish and rebuild seven buildings, build a new early childhood center, new outdoor athletic fields at Northeast Magnet High School and a new Future Ready Center for Trades at East High School. Two elementary schools would be converted to K-8 schools, and four elementary schools would close. The elementary schools set to close as part of the plan are L’Ouverture, OK, Pleasant Valley and Woodland. Most of those students would be moved to newer schools that were built in the early 2010s or are being rebuilt as part of the bond proposals, according to documents from the school district.
The district is consolidating its alternative learning programs: Wells Alternative Middle School would be expanded to a 6-12 school that includes Sowers Alternative High School. Chester Lewis Academic Learning Center and the Gateway Alternative Program would close in their current buildings and move to the current Coleman Middle School building or other buildings.
 

AUBURN, Ala. (WRBL) – Auburn City Schools is launching 2025 with a massive investment in education infrastructure, highlighted by a second high school, a new middle school, and the reconstruction of two of the district’s oldest elementary schools.
In total, the ACS 2035 Facilities Master Plan includes an estimated $383 million in capital projects, all funded without the need for new taxes.
The most significant development is the $214 million second high school at Shug Jordan Parkway and North Donahue Drive, with an anticipated opening in fall 2028. Once complete, both high schools will serve students in grades 9-12, shifting away from the current model that separates freshmen.
School officials are working on branding the new high school, including selecting colors and a mascot. Auburn City Schools spokesperson Daniel Chesser emphasized the importance of public engagement in shaping the new school’s identity.
“In January, we opened a survey to gather input from students, teachers, and the public. The survey closed on January 27, and we are now analyzing the data to determine what stakeholders want to see in the new high school,” Chesser said.
Beyond relieving overcrowding at Auburn High School, the second campus will double student opportunities in athletics, fine arts, and extracurricular activities.
 

EUREKA — The Eureka School District held a community meeting last month to discuss solutions for aging school facilities and safety concerns.
The school district has not passed a bond in more than 20 years and leaks, mold and crumbling walls continue to raise issues.
“We’ve failed at four bond attempts since that time, the last one being a year ago, but we still have a need to get those things done,” said Eureka School District Superintendent Joel Graves.
The core section of Eureka Middle School is more than 100 years old. Graves said the building is reaching its tipping point.
“Things that have deteriorated over the years from ground leakage and things like that, you know rotted floors, things that we’re always trying to maintain and address but it seems like they are just creeping up all the time," Graves told MTN.
Graves noted the middle school is completely out of compliance for ADA regulations.
 

Joseph Lenz, assistant superintendent of the Pine Bush Central School District, appeared at the Town of Crawford’s February 13 meeting with an important presentation: the district’s 2025 Capital Improvement Project, an initiative that could bring much-needed improvements to its seven schools in Pine Bush and Circleville if residents approve one or both of the plan’s propositions.

The PBCSD, after submitting its Building Condition Survey to the New York State Education Department, estimated that the entire school district needs $121,789,091 in construction work. Since completing the BCS, the district established the Five-Year Capital Facilities Plan and formed the Facilities Committee to determine the necessary short and long-term infrastructure repairs for its schools.

These efforts led to the creation of two propositions that residents can vote on in the next week-and-a-half. Proposition 1 would address the district’s immediate needs, including heating and cooling improvements, roof restorations, fire alarm upgrades, a new athletic complex in Circleville, and replacements to doors, windows, ceilings, and elevators. This proposition would cost $52,260,000, with no increase to residents’ taxes.

WASHINGTON — Power outages regularly disrupt school in Arizona’s White Mountain Apache Tribe, leading to spoiled food, limited access to technology and cold classrooms. School administrators sometimes heat buildings with kerosene. In some cases, they must close the school when carbon monoxide levels become too high.

“Our students need and deserve better, and I hope you will help us deliver on the tremendous promise these young people possess,” White Mountain Apache Tribal Chairman Kasey Velasquez told congressional leaders at a Feb. 12 oversight hearing.

During the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations hearing, tribal education leaders told congressional members that the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) schools face crumbling infrastructure, unsafe conditions and a massive backlog of deferred maintenance, while receiving less than half the per-student funding of other federally operated schools.  

The 183 schools run by BIE have collectively accumulated more than $1 billion in overdue repairs as of September 2022, according to testimony shared by Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-Ariz.) during the hearing. Many maintenance requests have remained unaddressed for years.

Government inspectors recently observed a crumbling foundation and an inoperable boiler at separate schools in the same Arizona town, despite work orders dating back to 2008. About 1,000 orders placed in 2000 remained unaddressed over two decades later, including requests for exit signs, fire alarm systems and replacements for asbestos floor tiles. 

LITTLETON — Local school officials say plans are moving forward for a new school for a new Shaker Lane School.
In an announcement, school officials said the Shaker Lane Building Committee has made "notable progress" in collaboration with town and school leaders. The new school would house students in pre-kindergarten through grade 2.
School administrators met on Jan. 29 with the Massachusetts School Building Authority’s Facility Assessment Subcommittee to review the project’s status. According to the Littleton announcement, subcommittee members expressed strong support for Littleton’s presentation and the work completed by the Shaker Lane team.
The current Shaker Lane School, which opened in 1961, was last renovated in 1998. Local school officials say the building has surpassed its useful lifespan and has several issues related to safety, building systems and educational quality.
Littleton school officials have spent years assessing the building’s conditions to determine its ability to support modern educational needs for young students.
 

Last Monday, the Northfield School Board heard a presentation from Director of Finance Val Mertesdorf and Director of Buildings and Grounds Justin Raabolle about the school district’s Proposed operating capital and Long-Term Facilities maintenance budget. The two budgets are a restricted portion of the district general fund, and a series of several state and local formulas determine the amount of funding available. The fund pays for several items but focuses primarily on maintenance projects around the school. Here’s Mertesdorf at the school board meeting: 

“And then all of these are very restrictive. So there’s revenue that comes in and the state has a statute that says here’s what you can and cannot pay for with each of these funding streams. So they have their own fund balance codes. So the revenue that comes in has to be spent on those items and we can’t. Mix and mingle with the other general fund dollars.” – Val Mertesdorf, Director of Finance for the Northfield Public Schools, at the 2/11/2025 School Board Meeting

A Nevada district court has ruled that sections of a 2023 bill that essentially forced the Elko County Commission to earmark a portion of property tax proceeds for schools in exchange for funding to build a new Owyhee school are unconstitutional because they single out the county. 

Elko County Manager Amanda Osborne said in a Wednesday statement that the Feb. 7 ruling in Carson City District Court only strikes the sections of AB519 mandating Elko County levy a tax for school facilities, and otherwise doesn’t touch the Nevada Legislature’s $64.5 million appropriation for the construction of a new Owyhee school to replace the run-down original campus on the Duck Valley Indian Reservation near the Idaho-Nevada border.

“Our understanding is that the $64.5 million appropriated by the Legislature for the construction of the new Owyhee Combined School will still be provided to the Elko County School District as planned,” Osborne said. 

The school district recently approved a bid for the school, and expects it to be completed by the 2027-28 school year. 

Osborne added that Elko County commissioners don’t plan to revoke the 20-cent property tax levy that they approved last February to comply with the bill’s mandate, or oppose the funding that’s been collected to date. 

This May, the Mesquite Independent School District board of trustees will ask voters to approve a $600 million bond to address safety, security, and aging facilities and equipment.

The Mesquite ISD said the bond package was created through a monthslong community effort with the assistance of a Bond Facility Planning Committee of community members, district employees, teachers, parents, and students.

The package is presented as two propositions:

Proposition A is a $578.5 million proposal addressing security enhancements, growth, and aging facilities. The prop plans for security upgrades, storm shelters, the consolidation of two older elementary schools, a new pre-K center, bus replacements, campus improvements, and upgrades to the transportation center.
Proposition B is a $21.5 million proposal for district-wide technology replacements.

OLYMPIA, Wash. — State lawmakers are debating a bill that would amend the constitution to lower the threshold of votes school districts need to receive to pass bond measures to large construction projects.

For 80 years, Washington law has required districts to reach 60% voter approval to receive the authorization to get the loan that typically funds new buildings or large improvements and expansions to schools. Joint Resolution 8200 would lower the threshold to a simple majority of 50% plus one to pass, as it currently stands in 38 other states.

“This leaves schools underfunding, students underserved and schools unable to need critical infrastructure needs even when their own communities strongly support the investment,” said Sen, Deobrah Krishnadasan, during a committee hearing in January. Krishnadasan is a Democrat representing District 26 which includes Gig Harbor, Bethel and Port Orchard.

A bill that would ban school districts from using their primary funds on school enhancements to repair or build school facilities died in the Senate on Wednesday.

On the third reading of Senate File 156, “Expenditure of state funds on K-12 public schools,” bill sponsor Sen. Ogden Driskill, R-Devils Tower, said the bill should be studied between legislative sessions. The bill has been postponed indefinitely.

The bill would’ve prohibited school districts across Wyoming from using the funding that’s distributed each year through the School Foundation Program to address facility enhancements. Districts would also have been prohibited from using their major maintenance funds or reserves, which also are funded by the SFP.

The Lafayette Public Trust Financing Authority board recently approved issuing $275 million in bonds that would allow two charter schools to refinance their existing facilities to a better interest rate.

The LPTFA board unanimously approved selling up to $100 million in bonds to Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy and up to $175 million in bonds to Acadiana Renaissance Charter Academy. Both are tuition-free public charter schools for students in elementary through high school grades.

The proposal goes before Lafayette City and Parish councils and the State Bond Commission next week.

If approved, the bonds would allow the Friends of the Lafayette Charter Foundation to finance the acquisition of existing facilities at LRCA at 205 Vienne Lane in Lafayette and ARCA at 600 Savoy Road in Youngsville. Currently, the schools lease buildings from Red Apple, a sister company of Charter Schools USA.

A coalition of more than 100 organizations representing public school advocates, parents, teachers, and community members are calling on Gov. Phil Murphy and the state legislature to invest $500 million annually to fund New Jersey’s school construction program, starting with the upcoming budget.

Dozens of speakers gathered at a virtual town hall described the experiences of students and staff forced to learn and work in old and crumbling buildings to underscore what they say is an “urgent need” for more funding for school construction projects. A Newark Public Schools teacher said numerous students at Bard High School had to be displaced because classrooms were too cold while teachers from Jersey City and Paterson explained how schools in their districts were dealing with rodents and leaky roofs.

Healthy Schools Now, a coalition of 135 organizations across New Jersey, said it hosted the virtual town hall last week to highlight how years of inadequate funding for the New Jersey Schools Development Authority has left dozens of schools across the state in dire need of repair and replacement. The SDA is responsible for fully funding school construction projects in Newark and 30 other high-poverty districts in the state. It also provides grants and undertakes construction projects in regular operating districts under a cost-sharing arrangement.

DAYTON (WGME) -- Many of Maine’s schools are in need of significant upgrades, with air quality, security and space concerns creating significant challenges for students and educators.
As school districts across the state struggle to keep up with repairs and replacements, a new push is underway to reform how Maine funds school construction.
At Dayton Consolidated School, space is tight. For more than 30 years, the majority of students have been educated in portable classrooms, moving between separate buildings and braving the elements between class and lunch.
“The staff and the principal have done wonderful things to try and alleviate some of that,” Superintendent Jeremy Ray said. “But the fact of the matter is, not having kids in the same school building, especially pre-K through 5, is really problematic.”
Beyond space limitations, the school, built in 1950, also faces air quality concerns and other limitations related to technology.
"Just having enough power in each classroom can be a bit of a challenge, because some of the older classrooms, I believe, have two outlets in them," Ray said. "The spaces that were designed 75 years ago may not quite meet 21st century learning standards and what we want for our kids and our schools."
 

It was 80 degrees inside Bugg Magnet Elementary School in the middle of end-of-year testing, so hot that teachers were hearing from their very uncomfortable students. “One student said, ‘Miss, can I go out in the hallway and lay on the cold tile with my shirt up?’” said Christina Cole, president of the Wake County chapter of the N.C. Association of Educators.
Cole repeated the story as told to her by a teacher, one of many anecdotes shared Wednesday evening at a rally and town hall meeting to spur community members to take action. The group estimates over two dozen schools have been forced to close at least once this school year due to extreme temperatures. They’re asking the Wake County Board of Commissioners to put a school bond on the ballot in 2026 to pay for deferred maintenance. “We’re focused on addressing facilities issues in our schools, specifically HVAC issues, because those have been so widely felt and incredibly disruptive to the school day,” Cole said. Last fall, the Wake County Public School System estimated it had over $200 million in deferred HVAC maintenance and replacement, and more than $600 million in total deferred maintenance.