Keweenaw Report Your Source for Local News and Sports
Last week the Houghton Portage Township School District finished gathering community input for enhancing education in the district. During the past two months, Superintendent Anders Hill says, the community provided key information that helped to guide the district in creating three options for facility expansion. For the planning and construction for any potential development the district plans to partner with Integrated Design Incorporated from Marquette and Gundlach Champion.
“One of them would be potentially adding on to the elementary school. Another option would be moving the fifth grade up to the middle school and building a wing onto the middle school. And then another option would be the potential of building a standalone kindergarten early childhood building. So we would only look at one of those options to alleviate space, and we’re getting some good feedback on those opportunities around the district to elevate education. So in each of the three buildings, we kind of have a list of between six and 10 items that we’re looking at, things like secure entry, furniture, technology, some additional STEM, science, technology, engineering, and math spaces. So really exciting things for our district.” – Anders Hill, Superintendent, Houghton – Portage Township Schools
Houghton Portage Township Schools hopes to alleviate some of the challenges it faces after growing in the last 10 years. In 2024 the district enrolls eight percent more students than it did in 2013, with 1,483 students. 37 percent of students today are enrolled as school-of-choice.
Primarily the three options will largely impact the space of the elementary school. Adding classroom flex space would cost an estimated 5.4 million dollars. Or potentially a 5th-grade multipurpose addition would cost around 2.4 million dollars. Houghton Portage Township has also heard from members of the community about the challenge gaps in child care options present to families. And the most expensive option may have the largest impact on the community. Setting up an early learning center would cost close to 11 million dollars.
“It would take students out of that elementary footprint and not add them to the middle school, but create a space (of their own). First off, kindergartners are kind of, the most unique grade in public school, in my opinion. So it would give them space to kind of enter school in a less, you know, busy environment. And also if you built that building, you could build it with the knowledge that maybe in 10 years you would add a first-grade wing to it. So you could kind of set your strategic plan for growth in the district. So that’s one of the options we’re considering and I think it’s a good option like the other two but we’re going to have to vet a lot of things before we get to that final decision-making phase.” – Anders Hill, Superintendent, Houghton – Portage Township Schools
Another factor in considering adding an early learning center stems from encouragement by the state to add education options for four year olds in Michigan. The model the district would consider with the early learning center named 4-K For All, would give 4 year olds the options to go to school before entering kindergarten. Other states in the country have also created similar programs, including Wisconsin that has had 4K education for many years.
The district will bring together an advisory committee made of community members, faculty and staff, and parents and students to work out the pros and cons of each expansion option. Earlier this week the district school board approved moving forward with proposing a bond continuation. In May the district hopes to have a better idea of the direction it will take in order to approve ballot language in time for November.
“Certainly those things would, you know, have to be approved in that ballot language. I think a thing that’s been important to us through this whole process is trying to be accountable to taxpayers and the proposal that we’re looking at is a millage extension. So in 2029, our millage rate drops off and starts to go down. And what we would.” – Anders Hill, Superintendent, Houghton – Portage Township Schools
Houghton Portage township schools will begin selecting members for the community steering committee that will decide of how it will use space to promote the education of students. Those interested in learning more about the school district’s previous community forums or want to learn more about the three facility options the district is considering can find more details below.
PDF file version of the presentation given during the district’s third community forum.
