New Message (from Bruce Rodman)
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Neuqua Valley FAQ'sQ. Why is a third high school so important to Neuqua Valley?
A. The crowding problem at the high school level is more pronounced at Neuqua Valley, and will only get worse as most of the expected growth in high school enrollment will be taking place in the Neuqua attendance area. This year, Neuqua has an enrollment of just under 4,100 students, with a maximum capacity of 4,200 (3,000 at the main building and 1,200 at the freshman center). Since the incoming 8th-grade class is almost 300 students larger than the graduating senior class, Neuqua's enrollment next year will be more than 4,200, which will cause a variety of negative impacts.
First and foremost is the negative impact on the educational environment from extremely overcrowded conditions. This exhibits itself in a number of locations: the classroom, the hallways and other common areas, as well as outside the school building/day. In the classroom, average class sizes are likely to increase as the number of available rooms will not be able to keep pace with the increase in students. In turn, scheduling becomes more of a challenge, and it is likely that students will not be able to take as many electives, due to limited space or reduced course offerings.
During passing periods at Neuqua, it can be a struggle for students to get from one end of the building or travel the stairwells. The cafeteria is another area in which the impact of too many students causes a variety of problems. In any event, the key consideration is that these common areas remain fixed in size while the student population continues to grow.
Last, but certainly not least, is the impact on extracurricular activities. As schools become larger, the competition for all activities becomes more pronounced. A couple of examples come to mind. Over the past several years, the speech and track teams were activities open to any interested student. It has reached the point where both cannot accommodate all interested students. The ability to participate in extracurricular activities is a key factor in developing well-rounded students and human beings.
Q. Why not construct additions to handle the increased students at Neuqua Valley?
A. In a community survey conducted last summer, district residents expressed a strong preference for more traditional bricks-and-mortar approaches to solving the space problem - either building a comprehensive high school or constructing additions. Less traditional approaches (year-round school, split shifts and magnet schools) did not score as well with the public. The school board carefully considered additions, and favored a third high school for a number of reasons.
One is that while there is some room for additions at Neuqua, they are not possible at Waubonsie Valley due to space limitations. As a result, we could easily find ourselves in a situation where Neuqua is approaching 6,000 students. While some people might not have a problem with such a large enrollment, it is virtually impossible to provide education in any kind of effective, personalized way in such an overwhelming setting.
Another concern, as referenced previously, is that additions provide more classroom space. However, they do not make the common areas or the hallways any larger. As a result, while additions provide more classroom seats, the basic infrastructure of the common areas would be woefully inadequate, particularly during passing and lunch periods. Other examples of facilities that would pose similar types of problems due to inadequate space include the auditorium, gyms and the library. As a result, the school board believed that a comprehensive high school offered the best long-term solution.
Q. If a third high school is built, why will Neuqua be larger than the other two?
A. Under the boundary decision for three high schools, and using the district's enrollment projects for current students and a modest addition for new growth, Neuqua would be just below its maximum capacity of 4,200. While it will still be a relatively large high school, it will not exceed its effective capacity on a long-term basis, which is likely to happen in the next year.
In addition, the main building itself will be comparable to the other two high schools, with all having a capacity of 3,000. Neuqua will maintain its freshman center, so that those students will remain largely separate from the upperclassmen. At the same time, the freshman-center concept will be maintained in the other two high schools through use of a designated wing for those students. We believe that if we are able to basically cap Neuqua's size at roughly its current level, we can continue to provide an outstanding educational experience that will provide our students with opportunities for achievement, development and growth.
Q. What will be done to manage Neuqua Valley's enrollment in the next few years?
A. The building known as the Frontier Campus, currently being constructed to the west of Neuqua, will provide much-needed flexibility to cope with increasing enrollments in the short term. The school district is leasing space in this building as part of a partnership with the College of DuPage. This program, which is open to all high school students in the district, will allow seniors to take a combination of high school courses on a college-type schedule, as well as courses for college credit offered through COD. The latter is particularly attractive, in that it provides a means besides advanced placement classes for students to earn college credits in high school, at a cost of just $10 a class. To the extent that not enough seniors want to take advantage of this program, classroom space for certain core classes will be scheduled in the building as if it were an additional wing of the main building.
Q. What if the referendum fails?
A. Within a few years, the total enrollment at both high schools - some Neuqua students will be shifted to Waubonsie to balance the total students at each school - will be greater than the buildings' capacity to effectively provide education in a traditional format. Thus far, the concept of split shifts seems to be the most likely way to handle the resulting large numbers of students.
Under this approach, half the students would attend high school for 5 hours in the morning, while the other half would attend for 5 hours in the afternoon. Needless to say, this poses some problems in terms of households with more than one high school student and scheduling for extracurricular activities. However, the biggest detriment is that the reduced time limits students to taking five courses. As a result, they will be forced to concentrate almost exclusively on core courses required for graduation, at the expense of electives such as advanced courses in their preferred career area or curricular music.
This will make it harder to students to take a challenging, varied set of courses, which can be a key consideration when college admissions counselors are reviewing student transcripts. There are also concerns that split shifts or other non-traditional means of providing education, such as year-round schooling, can have a negative impact on property values and teacher recruitment/retention.
This is a summary of some of the concerns and likely impacts on Neuqua Valley related to the referendum proposal. Much more comprehensive information, in terms of scope and subject matter, can be accessed through the District 204 website,
www.ipsd.org.
Sincerely,
Bruce Rodman, Member
Board of Education
