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<\/a><\/p>\n1. Please tell us about yourself and how long you\u2019ve been superintendent I am a lifelong educator. I started as a classroom teacher and coach in 2. Please tell us what makes the Papillion-La Vista School District special.<\/strong><\/p>\n There are many things that make Papillion La Vista Schools so special. I 3. Thank you for the opportunity to visit three of the schools in the Carriage Hill has many needs given its age. First, we plan to renovate the 4. What sort of improvements are planned for Papillion-La Vista South High PLHS and PLSHS will receive similar improvements. Both buildings will have 5. Liberty Middle School is a very new school. What kind of expansion Liberty Middle School was master planned so that it could be easily 6. Please tell us a bit about the district\u2019s STEM program.<\/strong><\/p>\n The District begins STEM education in the elementary years, and the 7. The district has a bond issue on the May 15 ballot. How much are you The District is asking for $109.9m for all projects. This is the largest 8. If the bond issue is passed, which projects will go first?<\/strong><\/p>\n If the bond passes, the Board of Education and administration will develop 9. If the bond issue is not passed, which projects will go ahead and how At least six months must pass after a failed ballot initiative before it
\nof the Papillion-La Vista School District.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nLincoln Public Schools before moving to Omaha and working with the
\nNebraska Department of Education. Prior to moving to Papillion, I worked
\n10 years with the Westside Community Schools. I am completing my fifth
\nyear as Superintendent of the Papillion La Vista Community Schools. I am
\nmost proud of being a husband to my lovely wife Amy and having three young
\nchildren who attend the District.<\/p>\n
\nbelieve our community involvement is one of the most significant. Everyone
\nhere is so invested in our schools, and they want to see us succeed. My
\nfamily and I have lived and worked in many communities across the Midwest,
\nand we’ve never experienced a better, more committed school district than
\nours.<\/p>\n
\ndistrict. One of them, Carriage Hill Elementary, is an older school.
\nPlease tell us about its modernization needs.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nfront entryway so that we have better security in place for our students
\nand staff. We also have several “open” classrooms that we need to
\nconstruct walls and closed entryways to keep our students safe. Lastly, we
\nwill expand several smaller classrooms and build a finishing kitchen to
\ngive students more healthy eating options.<\/p>\n
\nSchool?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nexpanded cafeterias and renovated entryways to make our students more
\nsecure. Both buildings will also have a Flexible Learning Space and new PE
\nclassrooms so that teachers and administrators will have the ability to
\nmeet the changing instructional needs of our students year-to-year. The
\nheart of the renovation will be the new classroom additions and dedicated
\nSTEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) workspaces.<\/p>\n
\nplans do you have for it and how were they built into the original design?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nexpanded as the student population building grows. This has been our
\npractice with other secondary buildings including both PLHS and PLSHS.
\nLiberty currently has around 400 students, but it will grow to almost 800
\nstudents within 10 years. We plan to add classrooms to the southern end of
\nthe building to accommodate the student growth, but we will likely not
\nbuild the addition for another 4-5 years.<\/p>\n
\nprogram continues to build into the middle school and high school. PLHS
\nand PLSHS both have STEM Academies where students learn a variety of
\nengineering and technology related topics including robotics. The STEM
\nAcademy is the largest academy in terms of student enrollment, and
\ncoursework is offered starting the 9th grade year.<\/p>\n
\nasking for?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nbond the District has ever offered.<\/p>\n
\na list of projects and priorities. The District typically spreads the
\nprojects over 4-5 years. We have developed a preliminary set of
\nrecommendations on the project list, and we will discuss it publicly once
\nthe bond passes.<\/p>\n
\nwill they be funded?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\ncan go back on the ballot. Unfortunately, that means we cannot bring the
\nbond back next November on the general election because the required time
\nwill not have passed. Also, there is no primary election in May 2019, so
\nif the bond fails, we may have to do a special election. We have many
\nneeds in the area of safety, security, and student growth, and these
\nprojects can’t wait another 2-3 years.<\/p>\n