Forums begin Tuesday on future of Pasco schools

As Pasco schools inch closer to another bond proposal, the district wants to hear from more citizens.

After about two months of talking to community leaders and school district employees, MGT Consulting is ready to ask the public what’s most important at Pasco schools.

Along with developing a long-term plan for the district’s buildings and other facilities, district officials hired the company to help shape the next bond proposal.

The last one — a $69.5 million measure — failed to gain the 60 percent approval it needed to pass during February’s special election.

School board members previously said they wanted to return the measure to voters in November. It’s uncertain whether they will keep to that time line.

Joe Clark, with MGT Consulting, has been leading efforts to form a 30-person committee for a new bond proposal.

The consultants plan three public forums, each starting at 6:30 p.m., at Ochoa Middle School on Tuesday, Stevens Middle School on Wednesday and McLoughlin Middle School on Thursday.

Attendees will be given a remote and asked 24 questions — most focused on the space needs for programs and operations, such as parking lots, music rooms and gyms.

One example, participants will be asked the importance of dealing with overcrowding and whether it is necessary to reduce the number of portable classrooms.

The system allows people to share their thoughts anonymously, Clark said.

“So people who don’t feel comfortable walking up to a microphone get to share their thoughts and opinions,” he said. “If you’re there, you can engage.”

Once the initial survey is done, participants will split into small groups where discussions based on their responses will be held.

The questions are based on about 40 interviews with community leaders and organizations, such as the Boys and Girls Club, the port, city, county and planners.

“We’ve developed through those interviews ... a sense of what the emerging themes are. Now we’re going to take that information out to the community and kind of validate it,” he said.

Understanding what the students, faculty and public need from their schools is the important part of the planning process, Clark said.

“The brick and mortar is an outcome,” he said.

People can also share their opinions even if they aren’t able to attend the meetings, Clark said. Copies of the survey will be available at schools and on the district’s website May 19-31.

Space at most of Pasco’s elementary schools remains at a premium.

Initial figures presented by Clark in March showed only Marie Curie, Longfellow, McClintock and Whittier held fewer students than they had space.

The rest ranged from Franklin, at 113 percent of capacity, to Livingston, at 199 percent of capacity.

The district serves 5,448 more students than it did 10 years ago, according to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. This is about equivalent to the number of students in nine elementary schools.

MGT estimates the student population at the district will growth continue to grow for the next 10 years.

The consultants expect to have all of the information for the strategy for their plan by the end of July, and by early October they will take the long-term plan public.

“We don’t want to leave a stone unturned,” said Randy Nunamaker, the district’s executive director of operations. “(Superintendent Michelle Whitney) wants to make this happen and she’s willing to do whatever it takes to do that.”

This story was originally published May 15, 2017 at 5:55 PM with the headline "Forums begin Tuesday on future of Pasco schools."