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Rio Rancho schools weigh borrowing plan to replace aging classroom technology
Summary
District staff told the Rio Rancho Public Schools board they face a roughly $5.8 million technology backlog and recommended using educational technology notes (ETNs) to borrow $2.5–3 million per year for a five-year modernization plan; staff said the move would not raise property taxes but would reduce future capital bond capacity and a resolution is expected July 27.
Terry Meyer, director of educational technology for Rio Rancho Public Schools, told the board at a July 13 work session that the district has about 16,000 Chromebooks in service and that roughly 14,000 of them are beyond the recommended four-year warranty. "We have 16,000 plus Chromebooks across the district. But of those, 14,000 of them are beyond the recommended 4 year warranty," Meyer said, and added that the district also has roughly 357 teacher laptops no longer supported by IT and needs additional classroom interactive panels and audio systems.
The technology director estimated a districtwide backlog of about $5,800,000 to bring devices and classroom systems up to recommended standards and proposed a five-year refresh plan that would refresh roughly 20% of equipment annually. In a modeled scenario, Meyer said an average classroom kit costs about $5,000, and the district could deploy a rolling refresh that would cost about $2.6 million a year; staff presented a financing scenario that would allow the district to borrow as much as $3 million in some years to accelerate catch-up work.
Mike Baker, chief of operations, framed educational technology notes, or ETNs, as a financing tool that would be paid from the district's debt service structure. "We would essentially borrow $3,000,000 per year," Baker said, adding that the approach would not increase property taxes because the district would use existing debt service capacity. Staff explained that of each $3,000,000 drawn in the scenario, roughly $2,600,000 would be applied to modernization purchases and about $400,000 would support the district's recovery plan.
Board members and staff discussed trade-offs. Baker and other staff said using ETNs over five years could result in $15,000,000 less in general-obligation capital capacity for facilities during that window; staff noted the figure shown on slides represented a projected reduction in future bond capacity (staff referred to the district's G.O. bond fund). Board members raised the option of taking a lump-sum to eliminate the $5.8 million backlog now versus phasing replacements over several years to smooth procurement and budget impacts. Several members also pressed staff on price volatility, noting Meyer reported Chromebooks have risen in price recently and that bulk purchases can produce steep vendor discounts.
Staff identified other potential funding sources they could combine with ETNs, including operational funds, SB 9-directed funds and future state or federal grants, but warned those revenue sources are uncertain. Baker noted that COVID-era federal and state grants that previously supported technology purchases have largely dried up. Legal staff, procurement and facilities staff were named as follow-up contacts for eligibility questions about specific grants and capital planning.
No formal vote or resolution to issue ETNs occurred at the July 13 session; staff said the next step would be to present a resolution for the board's consideration at the July 27 meeting. The work session ended after a period of board questions and staff responses.
