Under the merger plan, Waterloo West High School (pictured above) and Waterloo East High School would merge into one high school. (Screenshot from Google Maps)
Over 1,000 signatures have been collected so far to put a proposed plan to merge two Waterloo high schools on the ballot, organizers say.
The Waterloo School Board approved the $165 million consolidation plan of Waterloo East and West High Schools at a new school facility on Monday in a 5-2 vote.
If successful, the plan will turn the old high school locations into two separate middle schools once the high schools combine for the 2028-29 school year.
Opponents of the plan, many of whom are employees at the high schools, have already created a petition which if it gets 2,300 votes by Aug. 12 will force the school board to either put the plan on the ballot or abandon it.
To fund the project, the board approved $165 million in revenue bonds from the district’s SAVE funds that are intended to fund school repairs and that come from a 1% statewide sales tax divided between districts on a per-student basis.
However, supporters and opponents of the plan agree that both high schools are dated.
Waterloo Community School District Superintendent Jared Smith said the old locations are still usable but moving to the new location avoids the need for routine maintenance expected of older schools.
“The older you have of any building, there’s going to be constant maintenance needs,” Smith said. “By creating a new space for our 10th through 12th grade students, it addresses their needs, and then it lets us focus on the other grades that need attention in terms of their buildings.”
The new location will also give high school students greater access to the district’s “crown jewel” career center, he said.
Students will have access to career preparation courses in fields like graphic design or construction, according to the superintendent. While the career center already exists, the distance between the old high school and the center makes traveling in the middle of the day a hassle. If the schools combine, that concern won’t be there anymore.
Under the plan, the new facility would be built at the current location of Waterloo Central Middle School which is about a 12 minute drive or hour and a half walk from the old high schools.
Waterloo School Board Member Jonathan Cox, who voted against the plan, said the construction site has him concerned about the effect consolidation will have on transportation.
“East and West are pretty much like two neighborhood schools, so you have a lot of kids that walk there. Now we’re going to turn it around for them to get bused. We’ve had a busing problem,” Cox said. “I just wasn’t convinced that they had a plan for it.”
Cox added that exacerbating transportation problems could make the schools’ chronic absenteeism issues worse.
Smith admitted that the site’s location is a drawback but that it’s still the best path forward.
“The transportation is not ideal but it’s the best we could do given the land we have available,” he said.
The superintendent added that the district guarantees that every teacher will keep their job despite the merger.
“We’re going on record and saying nobody is going to lose their job as a direct result of this project,” he said.
Some teachers will be relocated to the new school site while others will stay at the old site, Smith said.
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$165 million for consolidation receives mixed grades
Petition advocate Shelly Smith, a parent of a current and former Waterloo high school students and no relation to the superintendent, said a project costing as much as this one requires more direct public input.
She added that the district spending money building a new school means less money is going toward other schools’ repair needs.
“It’s a responsibility of the public to vote on spending such a large amount of money, especially when they’re using collected tax sale revenue that was previously designated for school improvements and infrastructure,” Shelly Smith said.
Jared Smith said while he understands the concerns of those petitioning, consolidating the two schools at the new location is the best option available.
“We don’t have the space available on those campuses. We don’t know if we were to repair those buildings, where would we put those students,” the superintendent said. “What other options do we have?”
Cox said the district failed to fully educate the public about the long-term plan and the potential effects of consolidation.
“The why was not fully explained, community benefits were limited and, in my eyes, I thought it would be fiscally irresponsible,” Cox said.
Shelly Smith said the district has failed to properly inform residents about the meetings to discuss the plan and educate residents about what the consequences of merging are.
She added that allowing the public to vote on it would ensure more public accountability and trust of the plan.
“I feel that the school district missed a step in allowing the public to vote in this matter. And for $165 million, that’s a heavier responsibility than what I thought I was placing on the school board member that represents my district,” Shelly Smith said. “I believe putting this to a public vote allows for greater buy in and is more fiscally responsible by the school district.”
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