U-46 to undertake facilities study starting this fall
Elgin Area School District U-46 officials will begin a full review of how the district's facilities are being used starting this fall with the goal of preparing for the launch of new educational pathways, officials said.
It will involve not only looking at underutilization and overcrowding of the district's 57 buildings, but also evaluating the infrastructure needs of aging schools and how they can be reconfigured to accommodate evolving programming requirements.
"We have schools that were built in the 1890s through 2006," U-46 CEO Tony Sanders said. "Across 57 different buildings we have a wide variety of ages and layout. Most of the buildings in Elgin are at capacity. The empty seats are in the Bartlett area for the most part."
Officials also will determine the feasibility of moving sixth grade out of the district's 40 elementary schools into eight middle schools. That would require boundary changes and community input, Sanders said.
The last time the district looked at facilities use was during the 2015-16 school year. Enrollment has been declining over the past several years at the state's second-largest school district - 39,377 in 2017 compared to 38,764 in 2018. Declines largely have been in elementary grades.
Overall demographic trend data shows enrollment is expected to decline 2 percent yearly over the next two years.
The district will be working with an outside firm on the facilities study and has put out a request for proposals. Responses are expected soon, Sanders said.