District 200 wants input on possible referendum

For more than a year, the Wheaton Warrenville Unit District 200 school board and staff have engaged our community, staff and architects to develop a facilities master plan. This plan includes an educational assessment of our buildings combined with an existing physical assessment to provide a detailed, long-term view of our building needs.

This month, the board sent a letter to all District 200 homes that included a summary of the high priority needs identified in our facilities master plan. The list includes physical assets such as roofs, windows, plumbing, doors and fixtures that need repair or replacement.

It also includes renovation of the spaces in our schools, such as our middle schools, early learning center, libraries and science labs that do not currently support the needs of future-ready, 21st century learners.

We've spent a great deal of time developing, studying and prioritizing projects that will preserve and enhance learning environments through cost-effective solutions.

Our board members are considering a bond proposal on the April ballot to complete approximately $154 million in work identified as a priority in our facilities master plan. To make that decision, the board is seeking stakeholder input.

We are conducting a telephone and online survey to solicit community input. Community members will be selected for the telephone survey at random to ensure a representative sample. Phone calls will come from "Market Research Associates" from a 913 or 816 area code. All members of the community are invited to participate in an online survey available on our district website, cusd200.org.

Your input on our facilities master plan is critical. You can view more information at cusd200.org/facilities. We welcome your participation and feedback.

• Jeff Schuler is superintendent of Wheaton Warrenville Unit District 200. During the school year, his column runs monthly in Neighbor.