Board Talks:
Goal #3 Implement a financial system ties to District goals which meets the needs of the District in a most cost-effective manner. (Investigate measures to reduce or diminish the rate of school tax increase for this District. Report on future facilities options, including status quo, combining campuses (with annualized capital costs and potential savings estimates), and merger study.)

One of the responsibilities of the Board of Education is to look beyond the present time into the future when considering important issues such as facilities planning. It was with this thought that the OVCS Facilities Planning Committee was established. These people have toured both campuses and have come up with many fine ideas and suggestions. We thank them for their continued time and effort.

In an effort to find the most cost effective manner to manage our facilities finances, many avenues must be investigated. Do we stay as we are and invest more money into our existing facilities? Do we combine campuses into one building? Is merger a possibility? Each avenue has its advantages and must be thoroughly investigated to reach the most cost effective, most efficient decision. The most popular suggestion from the public would be to consolidate students to one campus, thus saving on two sets of similar expenses. We have heard this from the public both in person and via telephone and we appreciate their input.

One key to this undertaking is to understand that either campus would have to be expanded in order to accommodate all our students. Although enrollment is in a downward trend, this enlargement would be necessary due to state mandates, "the Computer Age" and the increase in services for children with special needs. We are presently negotiating with a specialized firm to provide us with a study detailing the possibilities involved, from planning to projected costs and estimates of savings. It is important to understand that this is only a study and is not intended to be anything more at this time.

Consideration must also be given to staying as we are with two campuses. This would be easy to do, as we could continue on as we are and make repairs to the facilities as needed. We have excellent tools to acquire cost estimates on these repairs. The Building Condition Survey and Five Year Capital Facilities Report are state mandated surveys that provide detailed information on the condition of our buildings. They estimate repairs that will be needed in the next 1-5 years and their cost and order of importance. These will help the above-mentioned firm when estimating cost savings on a one campus project.

The Board of Education at this time has chosen not to pursue a merger with any schools in the surrounding areas. Some of the reasons are extended travel distances, construction costs, and lack of interest expressed to us by the communities in the past. Lastly, it is the small school charm and intimacy that we all love about OVCS.

This is just one of the topics that will be discussed at our monthly meetings and we cordially invite the public to attend and express their thoughts to us on this and other matters. Your voice does matter. The Board recognizes the need to provide our children with the best possible education while keeping costs, and therefore taxes, as low as possible. With the public's help we can achieve the most cost effective answers to our facilities options. Thank you.