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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (April 5, 2017)
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 2017 20th Century schools unfit for 21st Century students I urge the voters in the Hermiston School District to join me and Janet in voting for the upcoming school bond election. We live in a vibrant, dynamic, growing community that brings significant population growth, including many youngsters of school age. This alone necessi- tates the need for more classroom space. In addition, schools built in the 20th Century are not equipped for the needs of the 21st Centu- ry. Briefly let me enumerate a few items to consider. 1.) Schools for today need to be energy efficient. Our old buildings that have classrooms with exterior doors do not meet today’s standards. 2.) In the same manner, schools must be more enclosed to allow for the security needed in these times. 3.) The schools being replaced were built before anyone knew of a thing called the Internet and few of us understood what the comput- er age was all about. Students of the 21st Century are required to be very technologically savvy and our schools need to be equipped to provide this knowledge. The jobs will be for those who de- sign, control, and use technology. Automation and robotics will do much of the work that was previous- ly done manually. Vote for 21st Cen- tury schools for students who will live and work in this century. JOHN AND JANET SPOMER HERMISTON Replacing aging schools make fiscal sense Is there wisdom in the Hermiston school bond that would tear down Highland Hills and build a new one? The bond would replace Rocky Heights Elementary, fix infrastruc- ture problems at Sandstone Middle School, add onto the high school, and replace Highland Hills Elemen- tary. I recognize that Rocky is a relic and needs replacing, Sandstone has major structural and safety concerns, and the high school is bursting at the seams. But why replace Highland Hills when most of us remember when it was built? Because tearing it down and building an entirely new building is the financially prudent decision over the long-term. It gives us more bang for our buck. The building is structurally unsound, regular main- tenance costs are high, the design is not safe for the children or staff, and the capacity is smaller than every other grade school. Tearing it down and building a new, higher-capacity school with better, longer-lasting materials is the prudent choice and will save our community far more dollars than continually patching up the current building. Join me in voting yes for the Hermiston school bond. SALLY ANDERSON HANSELL HERMISTON New schools facilitate continuing job growth As lead County Commissioner for economic development matters in Umatilla County, let me add some perspective to the discussion re- garding the 2017 Hermiston School Bond Measure. Schools are an important consid- eration for new companies in their consideration of siting in our com- munities. Potential employers are concerned because schools affect quality of life for families of work- ers they will employ. Aging facilities with overcrowded classrooms are a negative in the siting process. No one likes paying higher taxes. My efforts in economic development are to help bring economic growth to HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A7 our communities to help ‘flatten’ tax increases. Businesses pay property taxes on their business property; their employees live in homes that gen- erate property taxes; both produce ‘spin-off’ prosperity to a community. Growth means more tax payers to help absorb the cost of services pro- vided by taxes including schools. I support growth; I support the 2017 Hermiston School Bond. BILL ELFERING HERMISTON Bond benefit student learning for years We are writing in support of the Hermiston School District bond pro- posal that will be presented to vot- ers in May. As long-time Hermiston residents, our five children were raised in this community and edu- cated in Hermiston School District schools from kindergarten through grade 12. From the time our oldest child entered first grade through the graduation of our youngest — a 27- year span — we joined many other parents and community members and proudly volunteered alongside teachers, staff and Hermiston School District officials as they worked to ensure that the community’s expec- tation of quality education would be fulfilled. And, when faced with harsh realities of failing infrastruc- ture in old facilities and exploding student populations, the Hermiston community has stepped-up, passing bonds that built new schools and modernized other existing schools to extend their years of useful life. Hermiston, now the largest community in Eastern Oregon, continues to grow — in jobs, new businesses, and record enrollment numbers. Since 2008, when the last bond passed, enrollment of more than 600 new students has pushed existing Hermiston facilities to ca- pacity and necessitated the use of more and more modular classrooms at elementary school campuses. The proposed HSD bond will deal with these enrollment growth issues as well as addressing aging infrastructure and safety and secu- rity needs. In 2015, an independent safety audit of HSD schools by the Hermiston Police Department found that the district’s two oldest facili- ties, Rocky Heights (built in 1962) and Highland Hills Elementary (built in 1980), failed to meet current safety standards. The horrors of San- dy Hook and other school tragedies closer to home highlight the impor- tance of making our schools as safe as they can be. This bond allows for replacement of Rocky Heights and Highland Hills and construction of a new elementary school on dis- trict-owned property. Building de- signs will incorporate elements that better control access to campus and classrooms and limit numbers of doors to outside for greater safety of students, faculty, and staff. The bond will also address de- ferred maintenance and replacement of failing heating and cooling sys- tems at Sandstone Middle School and fund expansion and safety/access project at Hermiston High School. This school bond is an invest- ment in the future of our growing community and will provide safer and more accommodating learning environments for Hermiston stu- dents for years to come. Please join us in voting “YES” for Hermiston School District Bond this May. STEVE AND KATHY ELDRIGE HERMISTON Approving bond will accommodate growth Voters in Hermiston will have an opportunity to vote on May 16, 2017, to authorize a $104 million school capital improvement bond. I am writing today to encourage read- ers to vote in favor of this bond. Hermiston School District has been dealing with significant en- rollment growth for the past several years. Predictions from the Portland State University population study commissioned by the district sug- gest that enrollment in Hermiston’s schools could increase by as much as 24 percent, or 1,100 students, in the next seven years. In schools where capacity is already a signifi- cant concern at current levels, add- ing this number of students would create significant challenges for ed- ucators and students alike. Adding even more temporary classroom space in the form of mod- ular buildings is not a sustainable way to accommodate this enroll- ment growth. Based on the PSU estimates, an additional 56 mod- ular classrooms would be needed to accommodate anticipated stu- dent growth. The infrastructure at our oldest schools is not designed to handle the additional students housed in modular classrooms. Caf- eterias, libraries, and other common spaces in schools are not equipped to handle the additional number of stu- dents above and beyond the original designed capacity in each building. Additionally, funds to either pur- chase or lease modular buildings and install them at each location come directly out of the district’s general fund. Adding more modular classrooms could directly impact the educational program of the district, potentially leading to staffing reduc- tions, delaying important curriculum adoptions, and possibly leading to the reduction or elimination of im- portant programs that enhance stu- dent achievement. Please join me in voting yes for the Hermiston School Bond on May 16. JOSH GOLLER MEMBER, HERMISTON SCHOOL BOARD MORE WINNERS. MORE OFTEN. APRIL 2017 DRAWING APRIL 30! 317-piece 3 1 7 p i e c e J.H. J .H H . Williams W Master Tool Set valued at $8,000 APRIL 2–30, 12PM–7:30PM Win up to $500 CASH every 30 minutes! 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