Frequently Asked Questions

The District has done its best to maintain and improve its facilities through the years. However, as with any organization, it is facing challenges such as:

• Aging Infrastructure
• Four Oldest Schools Facing Significant Facility Needs
• Overcrowding and Inadequate Spaces
• Significant Life Safety and Security Improvements Necessary
• Ensuring Safety of Our Students
• Traffic Flow Significant Headache for Parents and Students
• 33% of Our Students Are English Learners
• 18% Have an Individualized Education Program (IEP)
• Accessibility and Personalized Support
• Ensure Equal Access to Programming, Resources, and Facilities

Meeting the needs of our students is a growing challenge with the aging facilities we currently have in place.

All public schools are required by the State to meet certain codes and have an approved Health Life Safety Plan. Even without any other major improvements, District 87 has approximately $26 million in identified facilities projects to meet these requirements over the next 5-10 years. A long-term solution will provide the best and most cost-effective means to not only maintain the buildings, but also make the necessary improvements to meet the educational needs of our students. Each year we wait for improvements will result in additional maintenance costs for the schools.

Additionally, the last referendum was passed 20 years ago. Those bonds that were sold to help pay for the construction of Jefferson, Whittier, and the District Office will be paid in full in the coming year. Potential referendum bonds in 2020 will allow the District to make the necessary improvements while limiting the overall impact on its taxpayers. Please use the Tax Impact Calculator to estimate your own tax impact.

The last referendum was passed on April 13, 1999 for $20 million.

Yes, after the last referendum was past in 1999, a state capital projects grant was applied for in 2003. Almost $9 million in state funding was received in 2004. The grant required matching funds by the District in order to receive the grant funds.

After careful study and analysis by the District's contracted architecture firm, Wold Architects, it was determined that it would be more cost-effective in the long-term to replace Sunnyside rather than renovate the school. Its existing infrastructure and layout would make it more costly to renovate and would result in a building that does not meet all of the needs identified in the Adequacy Study.

MacArthur has unique challenges in its layout and even with extensive renovation, we would not achieve the level of results that would be equitable compared to the other D87 schools. With 6 different levels, a secure entrance and accessibility for all students and visitors would be extremely costly to create.

With a newly constructed connected building for the two schools, all of the needs would be able to be addressed while also gaining efficiencies through the modernization of the building's infrastructure.

Yes, if any state grants become available, they will be applied for by the District.

A state maintenance grant was approved by the Board at its January 27, 2020 meeting. It requires matching District funds to be awarded and the District had to identify a specific project that the grant funds would be used for, if awarded. The total matching grant funds available equal $50,000.