School District Moving Forward With Bond Election Process

The Natrona County School District says it plans to ask for voter approval in a special election next year to help pay for some district-wide facilities improvements that the state of Wyoming doesn’t normally fund.

The Natrona County School District Board of Trustees voted unanimously on Monday night to pursue a bond election targeted for May of 2014.

Dr. Joel Dvorak, the superintendent of the Natrona County School District, says district officials have been considering a bond election for several years now. Dvorak also says the improvements under consideration range widely.

“There are some very high-profile things, like swimming pools, that aren’t funded by the state of Wyoming – we think kids should have that competitive physical education experience here in Casper,” Dvorak said. “So, that’s part of it, but there are also some curricular enhancements.”

Dvorak says the school district is now tasked with educating the community on the district's need to improve its facilities.

“We really are anxious to get the community to understand what the needs are and how we can build really quality facilities – we’ll be asking them to really help define what that’ll look like as we go through this process of defining exactly what this community wants, and, if they really want it, whether they’re willing to pay for it,” Dvorak said.

Dvorak says the school district is looking to make between roughly $20 million and $30 million worth of district-wide facilities improvements.