Packed agenda included $17 million bond details

This month’s Noblesville Schools board meeting was jam-packed with recognitions, including the teachers of the year, high school journalist of the year, robotics team, best community for music education, and others. The meeting then moved to action items and committee reports, which are the subject of this column.

This month I will discuss the $17.3 million bond and the strategic planning survey since these are time sensitive.

First, the strategic planning survey. According to the Superintendent’s Update, the administration is seeking input from students in grades 6 through 12, parents, employees, and residents of Noblesville township. As per Dr. Hile, postcards were mailed out last week to the Noblesville Township community asking for input on the survey for the strategic planning of the schools. There is a QR link and website link on the postcards for the survey. Dr. Hile stated that the information for the survey is also available on Parent Square as well as social media. In case you have not received information on the survey, the website link is nobsurvey.com. Deadline for submission to the survey is Friday, May 31.

It is my opinion that the strategic planning for Noblesville Schools is critical and we should give enough time to allow more members of the community to respond. Given the time it takes to receive mail and realizing we have a national holiday on Monday, the deadline for responding to the survey should be extended by a week or two.

Next topic is the proposed $17.3 million bond for repairs and replacement of school property. A large portion of the budget will go to the replacement of HVAC units in the high school that are about 30 years old. The remainder of the money will be divided among various projects including:

1. Renovation of a facility in the high school softball field to make it into a locker room facility for the softball team.
2. The update or rebuild of a building on Noblesville East Middle School used for ticket concessions and restrooms.
3. School paving at Hazel Dell Elementary and Stony Creek Elementary.
4. iPads for grades 9 through 12.

These projects have not been bid out according to the CFO. Final bond request could be higher or lower. Two public meeting have been scheduled, as required by Indiana Code, for Thursday, June 13, 2024, at 10 a.m. and Tuesday, June 18, 2024 at 6 p.m. The Noblesville community is invited to come and comment.

The next school board meeting will be on June 18 at 6 p.m. at which time the final bond resolution will be voted on.

Melba Kiser is an outspoken advocate for financial responsibility and transparency in government at all levels. Her column appears at least once each month in The Hamilton County Reporter Newspaper.