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Superintendent outlines Roselle Public School District bond referendum plan, citing safety, maker spaces and a new Chandler Avenue pre-K facility
Summary
Superintendent Dr. Fisher presented a districtwide bond referendum proposal to renovate eight sites, add security vestibules, create maker/innovation spaces and build a three-level 110,000 sq ft Chandler Avenue pre-K–2 facility; the board is awaiting final state funding numbers before setting a public vote.
Superintendent Dr. Fisher told the Roselle Board of Education on May 18 that the district is advancing a proposed bond referendum to renovate multiple schools and modernize facilities across the Roselle Public School District. She said the district has engaged a public-relations firm and an ad‑hoc communications committee and is awaiting final state notification of funding eligibility before finalizing the public outreach timeline.
Dr. Fisher described the referendum as a districtwide renovation portfolio that targets eight locations, including the high school, Graceville Day Junior High School, Elmore Middle School and a new Chandler Avenue pre-K–2 facility. She said the pre-K site is planned as a three-level, roughly 110,000-square-foot building with a 7,000-square-foot performing-arts space, a 6,500-square-foot gymnasium and a 4,100-square-foot cafeteria intended to serve as a community hub.
Why it matters: Dr. Fisher said the district last attempted a bond referendum in 1967 and framed the current proposal as a multi‑decade modernization effort that aims to reduce the number of times students must move between buildings. “We are looking to move from legacy to modernization,” she said, adding that the plan would reduce student transitions (currently as many as six) to four through rezoning intended to improve continuity and student outcomes.
The superintendent emphasized student safety and learning environments as pillars of the plan. She said the referendum would install standardized security vestibules across buildings and expand 21st‑century learning resources — digital fabrication, prototyping equipment, collaborative technology and maker spaces — in elementary and secondary schools. The presentation also said the district plans renovation work using current resources where possible and would reserve some projects for bond funding.
Dr. Fisher described steps the district has taken to prepare the outreach and design work: engaging the Laura Bishop Company for communications, convening an architects-and-stakeholders committee, marking a dedicated district website tab for the referendum and scheduling public presentations. She said visuals and a more detailed public package would be shown at the board’s next public session.
Funding and timing: The superintendent said the district is “patiently waiting” for the state’s numerical determination of eligible funding; she did not provide an overall bond dollar amount at the meeting. She also said several project state‑project numbers are already in the state system and that the board will publish more complete financials when those final figures arrive.
What happens next: Dr. Fisher said the district will present visuals and a more detailed plan at an upcoming public meeting and will continue community outreach once state funding eligibility is confirmed. The board took no formal vote on the referendum at this workshop meeting.
