Rogers Schools to Issue New Bonds To Pay Ongoing Construction Costs
School Board Will Consider Wrestling As High School Sport
Last updated Sunday, October 14, 2007 4:27 PM CDT in News
By Lana F. Flowers
THE MORNING NEWS
ROGERS -- New buildings and property value appreciation made a mill generate twice the money for the Rogers School District than in 2000.
The district will use that additional worth to issue a second set of bonds to generate $20.36 million for capital improvements and continuing construction projects.
The Rogers School Board at its Tuesday meeting will consider an agreement with Stephens Inc. to issue the bonds.
The district has more revenue than it takes to meet expenses, partly because a mill is worth more money than seven years ago, said Dennis Hunt, senior vice president of Stephens Inc.
The assessed value of property within the district now is $1.3 billion, nearly double the 2000 assessed value of $759 million, Hunt said.
A mill now generates $1.3 million, compared with the $759,000 a mill generated in 2000.
A mill is one-tenth of a cent. A mill produces $1 of tax for each $1,000 of assessed valuation on property. A property's assessed value is 20 percent of its appraised value.
The district could use proceeds from the bond issue to fund several ongoing construction projects, including construction of the $38 million Rogers Heritage High School; construction of a $16 million football stadium and other athletic facilities at Rogers High School; and additions to Greer Lingle Middle School to accommodate eighth graders and add locker rooms for varsity sports.
"We're going to run out of money pretty quick on those projects. We are at about $12 million in bond money left and the construction costs are running about $3 million to $4 million per month," said Kathy Hanlon, district treasurer.
District officials will need more money by January to pay construction crews, she said.
The district doesn't have enough money to pay all its expenses out of pocket from the additional millage value, Hanlon said.
But, that added value will make more bond payments, so the district can get a lump of cash at once and pay the debt through 2033. Hanlon said it's very similar to a home mortgage.
In other business, the School Board will consider adding wrestling as a club sport for ninth through 12th grades starting in November.
About 120 students, including 10 girls, indicated an interest in wrestling, Athletic Director Mark Holderbaum said.
A federal law passed in 1972, Title IX of the Educational Amendments to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, requires any entity receiving federal funds to give equal opportunities to males and females.
That includes allowing girls to participate in public school sports, like football and wrestling, that traditionally are male-dominated.
The Elmwood Junior High School football team had girls in the past and Oakdale Junior High School has a female player this season, Holderbaum said.
Girls who make the wrestling team won't be separated by gender. They'll wrestle boys who are in the same weight class, Holderbaum said.
Female high school athletes exceeded 3 million nationally for the first time, with 3,021,807 females participating in high school sports in 2006-07, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations, based in Indianapolis.
"The girls' participation figure is particularly exciting since this year is the 35th anniversary of Title IX," said Robert F. Kanaby, associations executive director. "We are pleased that more and more girls are taking advantage of the opportunity to participate in high school sports."
The associations includes all state activities associations governing public high school sports, including the Arkansas Activities Association.
The number of high school athletes increased by 183,006 to 7.34 million in 2006-07, according to the high school associations.
AT A GLANCE
Rogers School Board Agenda
The Rogers School Board will hold a study session at 5 p.m. Tuesday and a board meeting at 6 p.m. Both meetings are at the School Administration Building, 500 W. Walnut St.
The School Board will:
* Hear Superintendent Janie Darr's annual report to the public.
* Review Oct. 1 enrollment numbers and growth projections through 2018. The projections are based on three-, five- and 10-year histories of district enrollment.
* Review results of Rogers High School students' Advanced Placement test scores.
* Consider hiring Milestone Construction to be construction manager and general contractor for a 19,524-square-foot addition to Greer Lingle Middle School.
Source: Rogers School District.
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Maer568 wrote on Oct 15, 2007 7:21 PM: