Evansville Observer: School: Watercooler: What is your vision of the school district in ten years? How do you propose to achieve that vision?

Saturday, March 25, 2006

School: Watercooler: What is your vision of the school district in ten years? How do you propose to achieve that vision?

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The Evansville Observer7:10 PM
Richard Woulfe--school board candidate---

The year is 2016-----(this is way beyond normal planning so a little imagination is necessary…so indulge me.)

The school district of Evansville has grown due to homeowners in Madison seeking a quality small town environment where their kids can attend safe schools. Despite a small addition to the Theodore Robinson Intermediate School and conversion of some district office space to classroom space, the school is at decision point.

The current middle school has been coping with 25% increases in energy prices each year and this is unsustainable. Wars have raged in other foreign countries and gasoline is now $5.50 per gallon.

So…the school district builds a new energy efficient grade school and converts the current intermediate school into a middle school. No new athletic facilities are required. Mr. Roth is still the principal.

The old middle school is converted into the Evansville Adult Library on the first floor, and the second floor becomes the internet library with 20 terminals. Offices are present for the new internet virtual school headquarters which provides assistance for students taking classes on line and also those virtual students from outside Evansville who have enrolled. The old Eager Library has been converted into a larger childrens library. The definition of “school” and “classroom” have been redefined and completion of content of coursework is the focus…It is tailored to individual student pacing.

The current high school has added the new wing. It still is powered by geothermal, but two windmill turbines have been erected near Evansville that provide energy for all the schools----the construction of these turbines was subsidized by the State of Wisconsin because it was not fair that teachers be laid off just because of rising energy prices. Two school districts have gone together. Albany and Evansville. Prices have stabilized for energy.

Albany high school students now attend Evansville High. (see Union comprehensive plan) Elementary students of Albany still attend school in Albany. The merger of the school districts has been forced by the former rate caps, but one advantage is being able to offer more course selection and also have a location for a charter school.

After 5 years of rate caps, in the year 2011, a new gasoline tax was added and called the education sales tax. The property tax is not now the primary source of school funding.

Students of Evansville High School all have laptops which are very inexpensive and have all their lectures and notes on video Ipods. They are physically in class only 4 hours a day. The coursework load has not been decreased, however, and more writing is required and responsibility and expectations for achievement are high.

All the technology to achieve the above was present in 2006. The community after a series of workshops has agreed to this vision. There was a series of intense workshops engaging the community that produced the vision.

Because of growing commerical and industrial business in Evansville, as well as relief of property tax as the sole source of funding for schools, seniors are no longer forced to flee when they retire.

Everyone meets at the coffee shop each Saturday morn, and at each table they can flip open the laptop and access The Evansville Observer. It is the source of info for Evansville and nobody can remember who started it, but it does not seem to be important. All is right in Evansville.
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