Big plans ahead for small Rondout school district

With a single school building, Rondout Elementary District 72 in Green Oaks is tiny. But there's a flurry of activity on the horizon.

Results from a task force studying growth, formed last fall by Superintendent Jenny Wojcik, shows enrollment continues to increase. About 125 kindergarten through eighth graders roamed the halls when she was hired three years ago. Enrollment now is about 160.

"While those numbers are still small, it's a pretty big percentage increase for us," Wojcik said.

Projections to 2011 help the district plan ahead. Impacts on programs, facilities, extracurricular activities and parking, for example, have been determined.

The numbers show space is at a premium, so there will be some needed changes.

"Most of what's going to happen is reconfiguring existing space," Wojcik said. A new gym to augment the existing space, which is also used as a lunch room and for other functions during the day and at night, also is in the mix.

"We're trying to reuse with what we have, but add some additional space that will be a benefit to the community," she added.

No designs or costs have been determined as discussion continues. The district plans to use money from reserves and may refinance its debt to pay for the projects, but do not intend to ask taxpayers for help. The improvements are expected to be complete for the 2009-10 school year.

Of more immediate interest is the district's involvement in the coming school year as a test project for the Thornburg Center for Space Exploration.

The idea is to help sixth, seventh and eighth graders develop skills in science, technology engineering and mathematics using space exploration as a base.

Wojcik has known founder David Thornburg for some time. The center is a self-described group of consultants, speakers and authors, who work worldwide and are commonly found at major conferences on educational technologies.

The group works with a variety of entities from small schools to the federal government, according to its website.

Wojcik described the lessons as providing "very authentic learning." Students, for example, will not necessarily listen to lectures but will explore topics as professionals do, by questioning, experimenting, researching, and building projects of their own.

One example would be using satellite imagery to explore global climate change, she said.