Tulsa World: Jenks school board OKs site purchase, election change

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Jenks school board OKs site purchase, election change
School board members will now be elected by district rather than at large.

By CLIFTON ADCOCK World Staff Writer
Published: 11/3/2009 2:23 AM
Last Modified: 11/3/2009 4:21 AM

JENKS — The school board voted unanimously Monday to buy property that will house the district's administrators and to change how board members are elected.

The board voted to buy the Executive Plaza building, at 951 W. Main St., for about $1.4 million and a nearby lot for additional parking for about $165,000.

The current administration building, on the Jenks Central Campus, is scheduled to be demolished at the end of the school year to make room for a new math and science center, said Roger Wright, the district's executive administrator.

At least 60 employees will be relocated to the Executive Plaza, which is smaller than the current administrative building, until a new building is built, Wright said.

Once that building is complete, the Executive Plaza likely will be used for the district's community education program and classes, he said.

The flurry of construction around Jenks campuses is from a $155 million bond issue passed by voters in December.

"It's the priority of the administration and board to get the classrooms built first," Wright said. "After looking at the cost of renting the space (the Executive Plaza building), it was much more cost-efficient to purchase it."

Meanwhile, the board also passed a measure to let voters elect board members from their respective districts. Until the measure passed, each board member was elected by a districtwide vote, Wright said.

The change was brought up after an October report showed that the

district had surpassed 10,000 students.

Under state law, a district with more than 10,000 students must have its board members elected by the areas they represent rather than districtwide, Wright said.

The first election under the new rules will be in February, for the District 5 seat now held by Chuck Forbes.

Clifton Adcock 581-8462
clifton.adcock@tulsaworld.com By CLIFTON ADCOCK World Staff Writer

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