03-14-1988 - Agenda Packet City Council - regular meeting

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Long-range population projections are easy to come by but often undependable. The reascn for the inaccu- racy of population projection is owing to the simple fact that the projections are no better than the assumptions on which they are based. And it is dif- ficult to develop sound assumptions when one is louk- ing many years into the ...cure. The myriad of devel- opments that the future holds greatly impacts popu- lation. Given the trends of only ten years ago, school en- rollment was in a decline for most school districts except for a few isolated cases. In most instances this meant a restructuring of the program and budget belt tightening in order to continue to provide a sound educational program for fewer students. For the Orono Schools it was thought that the studei:t enrollment would decline to about 1.750 students dur- ing the 1987-88 school year. The expected decline in the number of students has been and is occurring at the secondary level. However, we are facing what a number of experts refer to as a "baby boomlet." These students are entering elementary school in in- creasing numbers. Therefore, the enrollment for the Orono Schools is not the projected 1.750 but rather 2.020 students. Beyond the rising number of children of the baby boom- er generation, other factors need to be considered by the school district as we plan for the future. In- creased housing in our area, the turnover of housing from those who have raised their children to new fam- ilies, and the possibility of increased population due to the 394 freeway are all factors which need to be considered. The Board of Education is deeply involved in studying the enrollment and facility needs for the school dis- trict. Key to any activity that the district would undertake is the development of a vision for thv tu- ture that would serve our community and would also provide the best in education for our students. This is a careful district that has made good use of its facilities and has m.iint.tinvd them well. In fact, we are one of the very few district" that can dt,l_.re that all of our facilities ore paid for. (.onttnued next column) ORONO SCHOOL BOARD David McKt.wn, Chairman 479-1692 Don Anderson, Vice Chairman 479-1810 Lucie Taylor, Treasurer 473-1189 Kitty Crosby. Clerk 478-6037 Jun Franklin, Director 479-2130 John %largish. Director 47.5-3197 continued In the months ahead we will be reporting to you our conclusions regarding :he facility needs of the dis- trict. Guided by practical consideraticns such as the needs of the students and the costs of facilities as well as a vision for educational excellence we will be presenting a plan for the future of the Orono Schools. It is our intention to develop a plan which takes into account three specific phases. First, we must address the immediate facility needs of the school district. We have reached our capacity, and in some cases have gone beyond our capacity, in using the facilities on our central campus. Second, we must address the short- range needs of the school district. Those facility needs that will be upon us within the next two to three years. And finally, we must address the long-range needs of the school district. What can we expect be- ycnd three years from today? In addressing these three specific time frames, we need to be conscious of a vision for the school district. We want to avoid a band -aid approach to our facility needs. The decisions that we make to address our im- mediate facility needs ought t� help lay the ground- work for our eventual solution to long-range needs. A coherent plan will be more cost efficient and will pro- vide the opportunity for a stronger educational program. I am taking the opportunity of this columr to share this information with you so that you are aware of our concerns and also aware of the fact that we are study- ing the situati^n and moving toward a sound solution. Dr. Themas B. Mich Scperinteedent