Frisco ISD Could Delay New School Openings
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FRISCO (CBSDFW.COM) - A meeting in Frisco on Thursday night could determine the future of several schools which are currently under construction.
The school board is considering a delay in the openings of four new campuses: Memorial High School, Lawler Middle School, Talley Elementary School and Liscano Elementary School. The new campuses are all being built to ease overcrowding at other schools. Currently, they are supposed to open in the fall of 2017.
Thursday's discussion comes after voters rejected a property tax increase that would have generated about $30 million for the district. "Now, we're looking at ways to be more efficient with our current level of funding," said Todd Fouche, finance director for Frisco Independent School District. "It is expensive to open and staff new schools."
The school board is expected to discuss those costs, as well as the potential consequences of delaying the campus openings, at the meeting on Thursday night. If the openings are delayed, the buildings would sit empty after construction is complete. The funding which voters rejected was only for the staffing and maintenance of the schools. The construction costs had previously been approved.
"On the plus side, it would save us money in the short term," Fouche explained. "It would let us take a time out, and let us look again at what are priorities as a district."
Frisco's schools would remain overcrowded if the decision to delay those new school openings is made. However, the district's enrollment this year was lower than they originally projected. "We had around 200 fewer students this year than we thought," Fouche said. "Right now, the feeder patterns to these schools under construction are significantly lower in student population. So, fewer students may be affected by this decision."
There are currently nine high schools in the Frisco ISD, with Memorial High School set to become the district's tenth campus.
Beau Jennings is the parent of students at both Wakeland High School and Staley Middle School, which would likely feed into the new Memorial High School. "From what we've heard, my daughters will be going to Memorial," Jennings said. "My son is currently going to Wakeland so, by the time that he gets to be a senior, my daughter will be going into her freshman year, and that will be a little awkward being split. But we're not even sure if that school's going to be opening next year or not."
Thursday night's meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. at the school district's headquarters. While the issue will be discussed, the school board is not expected to make their final decision on whether or not to delay the school openings until a full board meeting on Monday. Zoning for the new schools is still up in the air until the openings are worked out.