As the nation's eleventh largest school district, Dallas Independent School District serves more than 164,500 students who come from homes where 58 different languages are spoken. Operating with a $1 billion dollar budget, DISD employs 19,234 employees including 10,500 teachers in 218 schools.
6 Nov 2001
General Superintendent To Present Recommendation To Board of Trustees Nov. 14
DALLAS--To inform the public about the upcoming bond proposal, the Dallas Independent School District will hold an informational meeting at 6 p.m. Monday, November 12, in the auditorium of the Administration Building, 3700 Ross Avenue.
General Superintendent Mike Moses will preside over the public meeting where he will give an overview of the process, research and public input that have assisted his executive team in preparing a bond proposal to be presented to the Board of Trustees Wednesday, November 14, for a vote consideration.
The public meeting continues Moses' commitment to keep the public informed about plans to be implemented to help achieve the district's top priorities, which include improving DISD facilities.
"As good stewards of the public trust and resources, the district takes seriously its obligation to keep the community well informed," Moses said. "Since the process began several years ago, the district has solicited the community for input, assembled a task force and conducted internal and independent assessment studies. This is a monumental and intricate project. The public meeting is the first in a series of forums to make the information accessible to the public."
Moses will be joined at the meeting by Larry Groppel, deputy superintendent--Business Services, and Craig Reynolds, chairman of the Facilities Needs Task Force. The bond proposal resulted from the reports and data collected by the district's 5-year old task force and Heery International Inc., an architecture, engineering and construction management firm hired to conduct a facilities needs assessment of all district buildings.
On October 25, reports from the task force and Heery International were presented to DISD trustees at a called board meeting. During the meeting, the superintendent told the trustees that the facilities needs of the district total almost $1.84 million. This cost includes expenses for renovating existing buildings and the construction of two new high schools, six middle schools and 24 elementary campuses.
Moses explained to board members the price tag was a total assessment, and he would make a recommendation after his administration finished analyzing the data. He noted several factors helped contribute to the $1.84 facilities needs estimate. The last district bond election occurred in 1992 and was for $275 million less than half of what was recommended. Moses added that more than half of the district's buildings were constructed before 1953; 40,000 of the district's 163,763 students attend classes in portable buildings; and 74 portables are 40 years or older. The student population of the district has increased from 137,530 to the current 163,763 in just 10 years. After the bond proposal is presented to the trustees on November 14, nine other community meetings are planned throughout the district during November and December.
For news and information about the Dallas Independent School District, visit www.dallasisd.org.