Survey on VCSC facilities available for those unable to attend listening sessions
The survey asks the same questions as those presented during the listening sessions. Those who fill out the survey remain anonymous.
The survey can be found at bit.ly/4n5afSA.
For more information on the facilities study, go to https://web.vigoschools.org/board/#facilities.
The school corporation says that because of a lack of investment in addressing preventative maintenance and modernization needs over many years, 'the opportunities available to our students are behind those available to students enrolled in other school districts.'
Based on the current number of VCSC schools, after each school is modernized and overdue preventative maintenance needs are addressed, an average of about $20 million per year will be needed for preventive maintenance to prevent buildings from returning to their current levels of disrepair, the district states, the district says.
Currently, after property tax caps are factored in, only $9 million is available each year in the operations fund to address preventative maintenance and modernization, and that dollar amount is expected to decline in upcoming years.
The district currently has 23 schools: 15 elementary, five middle schools and three high schools.
A facility study suggests that based on enrollment trends and best practices across the state to balance student needs with available funding, 'It is possible to consolidate to 9 elementary schools; 3 middle schools; 1 high school.'
The school corporation held a public listening session on the matter Thursday evening at the Terre Haute Convention Center.
A second listening session was scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday at the same location.
The school district is hosting the sessions with the aid of the the See You in Terre Haute Community Plan and the Terre Haute Chamber of Commerce.
The sessions are designed to gather public input as the VCSC considers recommendations 'related to the number of schools needed to effectively serve the community, based on current population data and future projections.'
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