Schools face uphill battle

Overcrowding, the need to replace fire alarms, deteriorating plumbing, lead-paint covered walls, some with cracks and asbestos are among the mounting problems facing northern Nevada schools.

Just under $240 million is the immediate need for area schools, according to data from the Washoe County School District. That funding would cover things such as plumbing, roofing, electrical systems and furnishings just to list a few of the needs from schools across the district.

Additionally, more than $223 million will be needed through the next 10 years for “serviceable future needs” to maintain the schools that already exist. Most schools in the district are labeled as “nearly all overdue” in terms of repairs or updates the facilities require.

Reed High school and Reno High school are among some of the most expensive costs to address the conditions those buildings are in. Combined, the two schools are in need of immediate funding totaling more than $25 million alone.

With new firms like Tesla and Switch moving into the area, local governments are estimating that the region is going to need 17,000 more households over the next five years in order to keep up with business development.

With an influx of new residents moving to the region, projections estimate that there will be 10,765 new students by 2024 in Washoe County. To accommodate the new students the county would require at least an additional $781 million in funding to facilitate the incoming students.

This would stress existing student populations even more than they already are due to overcrowding.

Seven high schools are at more than 100 percent capacity in student populations. Those schools include: Spanish Springs, North Valleys, Hug, Sparks, Galena, McQueen and Wooster High schools. No high school in the area has a student population that is under 90 percent capacity.

Out of the 95 schools in the district, 31 are more than 30 years old and nine are at least 50 years old.

Currently, there are no plans to build any new schools in 2016 and there hasn’t been a new one built for nearly a decade.

At The Chamber’s Directions meeting on Jan 28, Shaun Carey, chairman of the Public Schools Overcrowding and Repair Needs Committee, said that 15 new schools are needed at each level. The new schools are needed in order to keep up with a projected population growth rate of almost 2 percent for the northern Nevada region.

Nevadans will be given a chance to help the school district in the upcoming election later this year. A ballot measure to increase property or sales tax will be presented to voters at the Nov. 8 General Election.

If the ballot measure in November fails to be approved by voters, Washoe County schools risk starting double sessions to compensate for overcrowding for a number of middle schools and high schools.

Double session classes would be scheduled to begin 6 a.m. to noon and noon to 6 p.m. This essentially means that the district would run two schools out of one building. Students who take the bus to school may end up waiting for the bus to pick them up earlier then 5 a.m. for the first session. For the late session, students who take the bus may not arrive home until after 7:30 p.m.

For working parents, double sessions would likely force them to arrange for child care or leave the children unattended until they finish their shift. Under double sessions extracurricular activities like sports and band would likely suffer as a result.

“This ballot question, if voters approve it, would raise enough funds to adequately address the district’s building needs,” said Traci Davis, superintendent of the Washoe County School District at the 2016 State of Education address on February 1. “There is no staying the same. With no additional funding our schools will deteriorate.”

In the address, Davis updated the community on the successes of the past year and the challenges that lie ahead. She identified lack of funding for construction and overcrowding as the district’s biggest challenges moving forward. She said that the problem has been growing for at least a decade and the district is at a breaking point. Davis added that as the Washoe County District moves forward, “the problem will either get worse or it will get better.”