Community Meetings with Ferndale Superintendent Set

Ferndale Superintendent Gary Meier will be meeting with the community starting Tuesday to discuss the elementary parent surveys and school improvement needs.

The meetings will take place throughout the district:

• Dec. 6, 7-9 p.m., at
• Dec. 7, 7-9 p.m., at
• Dec. 13, 7-9 p.m. at
• Jan. 11, 6-8 p.m., at the Pleasant Ridge Recreation Center
• Jan. 23, 6:30-8:30 p.m.,
• Jan. 30, 6-8 p.m., at the

The elementary parent surveys were sent out in spring 2011 to gather information from parents on the current elementary programs as well as future improvements to these programs. Meier will discuss the surveys, any short-term or long-term action that might be taken and field any questions parents may have about them. (Read the responses to the survey here.)

The second item on the meeting agendas will be the discussion of the various school improvement needs.

The district has applied for a $22.8 million school improvement bond with the Michigan Department of Treasury. . At its Dec. 19 meeting, the board will decide whether it should put the bond on a Feb. 28, 2012, ballot or not.

Over the summer, a bond committee was established to study whether or not the district should pursue a bond and what those projects the bond might entail.

The committee came to the conclusion that, yes, the district should pursue the bond. The committee also debated and discussed the projects that would make up the bond, which include asbestos removal at the high school, several mechanical upgrades or replacements and the construction of a kitchen at Roosevelt.