Dr Waggoner at WREAn overwhelming majority of attending parents and community stakeholders were ready, by the end of the Richardson ISD presentation Monday night, to build six new classrooms at White Rock Elementary. Only three hands shot up to register adamant opposition. About sixty percent stressed the need for bigger common areas to go along with added classrooms, and the rest of the 150 or so people in attendance said they were comfortable leaving details such as expansion of gym and cafeteria spaces to architects and district experts.

The informal poll was non-binding – RISD trustees will make the final decision Nov. 4 —but few went home doubting White Rock will have new classrooms when school starts in 2014.

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“RISD is growing, and by far the greatest percentage of new students is from the Lake Highlands area,” said Superintendent Dr. Kay Waggoner. “This school has done more repurposing of spaces to use as classrooms than any other campus.”

The RISD had predicted construction might be needed based on Templeton Demographic’s projected continued growth for WRE, which has seen a 44% increase in students since 2008. Already this year, White Rock’s growth exceeded Templeton’s expectations by five percent.

Several parents seemed to doubt that six new rooms would be enough, and RISD reps admitted they couldn’t promise that additional measures won’t be needed down the road.

“The math just doesn’t add up,” declared Ashley Hickey. “We’ve got six sections of Kindergarten and six sections of first grade. We’re really only getting three classrooms, because we’re giving teachers back space taken away when it was repurposed. A lot of us would like to see you just go ahead and do the surgery.”

“The Templeton study takes this into account,” replied Dr. Waggoner. ”We feel like six additional classrooms will be enough.”

“This gives you immediate relief,” conceded Tony Harkleroad, Deputy Superintendent for Finance and Support Services, “but it doesn’t preclude the possibility of redrawing attendance boundaries later. This is an intermediate step.”

Waggoner and Harkleroad discussed the possibility of including a new elementary campus in the 2016 bond election to alleviate overcrowding. The RISD owns no land for a school in LH, they said, but has time to look into if growth continues.

“It would take at least five years to get a new school on the ground,” said Dr. Waggoner.

(The Lake Highlands Town Center, Harkleroad said when asked, is an unlikely site. “I’m not sure that would coincide with the city’s vision,” he joked. The City has set up the Skillman corridor TIF to generate economic benefit and stimulate the Lake Highlands economy, and a school generates no taxable value.)

Several parents asked about portables as a quick, inexpensive solution for growth which might ebb and flow. Dr. Waggoner warned of the security/safety risks, and a teacher mentioned (from experience, clearly) the challenges of taking the entire class to the bathroom when one child has to go.

“In a tornado, there’s no place less safe for children,” added Bob DeVoll, Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Schools.

Revealed at the meeting were preliminary architectural drawings of the new construction, with six classrooms added to the back end of western-most wing. Restrooms would be included and three smaller “pull-out” spaces could be added, where small groups or individual students would receive instruction. The back wall of the cafeteria was shown extended outward for expansion.

Next up? RISD trustees will consider the matter at a meeting Oct. 30, then they’ll vote Nov. 4. Both meetings are open to the public.