Project details
The $45 million bond proposal includes plans that will enhance learning for students at all levels, from kindergarten through 12th grade.
Construction has already begun on a number of projects — read the latest updates on current construction. For details on the plans, click on any of the individual projects:
| Completed and open in August 2009 | Anticipated opening in August 2010 |
| New elementary school | Additions to Eudora High School |
| Renovations at West Elementary | New Technical Education Center facility |
| Additions to Eudora Middle School | District athletics complex |
New elementary
school: OPENED on time in
August 2009
Eudora
Elementary School has a capacity of 200
students per grade for grades 1-5. This large facility, originally
developed as part of the district's long-range facilities plan,
groups individual classrooms into smaller, themed areas to ensure
that every child feels connected not only to his or her individual
classroom and teacher, but also to a small community of children
from the same grade.
In
this type of concept, all second grade students and teachers, for
example, are housed in one area of the building, complete with
classrooms, restrooms and common areas. Each of these areas
has a unique theme, based on the world's biomes. The themes allow
students to identify their classroom area from anywhere in the
school, and gives teachers rich learning environments that can be
used to enhance the curriculum.
The
new school is divided to serve the primary grades and intermediate
grades separately; at the same time, resources, such as the
library, kitchen, gymnasium, nurse's office, are centralized for
all students' benefit. The school also is
equipped with the most effective educational technology and the
latest security measures to ensure the safety of our
students.
§ Read about the
philosophy behind the design of the new school.
§
Where will
kindergarten and preschool students attend?
§ What will
happen to West and Nottingham?
Eudora West Early
Childhood Family Center: OPENED on time
in August 2009
In order
for Eudora West Elementary to be used as an attendance center
for pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students, some minor
renovations were be done. The main change will be the addition of
restroom facilities that can meet the needs of these young
students, including close proximity to each classroom. Click
here to visit the home page for West Early Childhood Family
Center.
Additions to Eudora
Middle School: OPENED on time
in August 2009
The latest
additions to the middle school are a pod for sixth grade
classes to keep sixth graders in one area for all core classes, as
well as an expanded commons/cafeteria and kitchen needed to
adequately serve the increasing student body. These additions also
address the enrollment growth that previously required portable
classroom modular units south of the middle school.
Addition to the Eudora
High School: Scheduled to open in
August 2010
Plans for
the high school include an auditorium, as well as an additional pod
and science classrooms to meet the demands of growing enrollment.
The auditorium is slated to seat a minimum of 750 people, greatly
expanding the capacity available for performances and special
events.
View
images of the projects at EHS and the Eudora-De Soto Technical
Center, approved by the Eudora Board of Education in January 2009.
High
school / technical school campus
New Technical
Education Center: Scheduled to
open in August 2010
The growth
of technical education programs within the Eudora-De Soto Technical
Education Center, point to a need for a centralized facility for
these programs. A new building on the middle school/high school
campus will house all five of the current technical programs, as
well as new programs in industrial maintenance and
biotechnology.
This
facility also will be a resource for a growing partnership with
Johnson County Community College, including anticipated day and
evening community outreach classes.
§
How will
this affect the De Soto partnership?
View
images of the projects at EHS and the Eudora-De Soto Technical
Center, approved by the Eudora Board of Education in January 2009.
High
school / technical school campus
Athletics complex for
soccer, football and track: Scheduled to
open in August 2010
A new
stadium will be built on the campus southwest of the high school,
replacing regular varsity use of Laws Field and the soccer fields
north of the middle school. The use of artificial field turf will
save the district money and will create a surface that can be used
by any and all activities, without the challenging wear and tear
that accompany a natural grass surface. This new facility will
include adequate parking, locker rooms, fan accommodations, and
increased safety.
Is this project going to be cut? District leaders and school board members are committed to following through on the bond package approved by voters, if at all possible, and the decision to proceed with the stadium won't be made until early 2010. The Eudora Board of Education will be working to identify how the stadium project might proceed, given the budgetary limitations that have come up on the state and local levels. The stadium project always has been scheduled to go out to bid in early 2010, so the timeline still is entirely on track for the stadium project to proceed if possible. Read more in the RumorWatch.
§
What will
happen to Laws
Stadium?
§
How can artificial field turf save the
district money?
Technology and
security
This bond
package includes funds earmarked for both student safety
and educational technology. The vision for technology in
Eudora schools is that classrooms and entire buildings would become
an integrated learning environment, taking full advantage of
wireless networks and interactive learning tools. Even now,
technology is being tested by
district teachers so that decisions about what to include will be
based on actual classroom experiences of our own teachers and
students.
And
while we believe that our community is an extremely safe place to
live and raise a family, we also are keenly aware of the threats to
student security faced by districts both large and small. As a
result, the district is pursuing key card access in new facilities,
which will dramatically reduce the opportunities
for unauthorized entry by individuals who should not be in the
buildings. We are making every effort to maintain the friendly,
welcome environment that currently exists in our schools, while
keeping a focus on safety of our students and staff.
These enhancements of technology and
security will be installed progressively, according to the
completion of construction and additions at the school
buildings.
District
office / operations center removed from bond proposal.
Six months
prior to the election, the Eudora Board of Education voted 6-0 to
move forward with a bond package that did not include a central
office or transportation center. Board members acknowledged
the short-term need for such a center but chose to remove it from
the bond package in order to keep the mill rate steady and
prioritize spending in areas that directly touch students and
teachers every day.
The board will continue to pursue
opportunities to expand the central administration and operations
center, which could include the purchase and/or renovation of
existing facilities or the construction of a new building.
These opportunities would be financed within the existing tax
structure.
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This page was last updated Sept. 18, 2009.
