ROGERS, Texas (KXXV) — "We are taking care of kids and we are trying to do the right things by kids," said Rogers ISD superintendent, Duana Brashear.
"There are so many things that you will see on this bond that are just tightly, tightly tied in with safety and security."
- One bond offers minimal to no tax impact
- Voting will take place in May
- Information meetings are being finalized
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“From the field degrading, Prop B has a lot to do with resurfacing the track and re-crowning the stadium and so those are things that are just tied to student safety,“ Brashear said.
The bond on the ballot in May has two propositions totaling $31.715 million.
"We are taking one of the oldest buildings in our district and have asked for a demo of that and from that we would develop a new band hall,” Brashear said.
If approved, the money will help fund facilities and improvements, including new practice and academic spaces, science labs, and upgrades to athletic facilities.
“Our teachers also don’t have a lot of teacher restrooms and so that's something that came out from staff surveys,” Brashear said.
The bond will also cover funding a safer crossing of FM-437 to access the field house and track.
“One of the big items on our Prop A is a hyper safety beacon, which would regulate traffic and student crossings,” Brashear said.
Brashear says the lighting on the baseball and softball fields is also causing a safety issue.
“Our practice field is not even it causes a lot of problems during practice — lighting,” Brashear said.
The district says Proposition A will have a minimal impact on property taxes, but the passage of both Prop A and B will result in an additional $35 in taxes on a $250K home.
Brashear says this would be phase one of a long-term plan for growth at Rogers ISD.
"That was a part of your mission when you took this job as a superintendent?" asked 25 News reporter, Epiphany La’Sha.
“Absolutely — we talked about that when I got here and what would success look like a year down the road," Brashear said.
"We are still a couple of months away but success is that kids are happy and they are safe."
About 1,000 people walk on campus every day — Brashear believes the facts show that if the priorities are fixed, there will be success more than five years down the road.
The last bond the school had was in 2021, and they spent a little over $2M.
Administration says they focused on the basic needs, like upgrading buses, and small things around the school to upkeep it.
This time around she says they are focused on the priority list the committee put together — things that align with the school's legacy down the road.
The school is still working to organize those meetings for the public.
Brashear says she will be ready to answer any question they can, and says she will be there not to persuade any vote, but to present the facts.
