The Board of Education on Wednesday will consider ballot language on the April 2020 ballot to fund various building projects in the Fulton school district.
The meeting is set for 7 p.m. at Fulton High School.
FPS Superintendent Jacque Cowherd said the preliminary ballot language was constructed through the district's financial adviser and vetted by their financial attorney. An official vote will be held in December to finalize the language, he said.
"I just didn't want any of the language questions to come up in December so this way we can address any questions beforehand," Cowherd said.
The preliminary ballot language for Proposition S requests that FPS borrows $27.5 million without an increase of its current debt service levy at $0.7612 per $100 of assessed valuation. The money would go to a number of district projects that include site development, security enhancements, a gymnasium addition at FHS, theatre improvements at FHS, additional classrooms at Fulton Middle School and more.
One section of the preliminary language outlines room for either a new building for a kindergarten center or purchasing an existing building for new classrooms.
"A new school for kindergarten students at the Fulton Early Childhood Center or purchase an existing building for renovation to create those new classrooms based upon cost analysis," reads the preliminary ballot language for Proposition S. The language also mentions parking lot expansions throughout the district, HVAC and plumbing improvements, and completion of repairs and improvements to the existing facilities.
"I feel positive about (the ballot language). We've got a lot of work to do to communicate it to the public," Cowherd said. "The good news is we've had four open forums, consistent positive feedback and community surveys where we got a lot of input from."
Cowherd said he will address the Fulton City Council on Tuesday to let community leaders know what the district is looking at right now. Cowherd said the district is ahead of schedule in the ballot language process.
The Board of Education meeting will also include information regarding district employee benefits, shared by the district's benefits committee. Cowherd said no changes are planned for the current benefits system, just an update on work done in the last year by the committee.