Keeping up With Education in Idaho...New School Construction

Nine new schools are currently being constructed in three of the districts in southwest Idaho; Boise, Nampa, and Meridian. The schools' price tag will total $184.8 million, and the new schools are being built to update facilities and keep up with major growth in these Idaho communities.

Features of the new schools
The Boise School District superintendent stated that one of the goals of the school's construction is to modernize facilities and integrate these facilities into the framework of the community. This partnership between the members of the community and the administrations of the school will only bolster the new growth in the area, and will prove to be very beneficial to all families who can access these new facilities. Some of the features of the new schools include the following:

• Public community centers: the one at the Morley Nelson Elementary school will be about 4,000 square feet. These community centers could contain public sports complexes or areas for community functions and activities.
• New auditoriums: South Junior High School will have a new 970 seat auditorium to replace the old one. This facility will also be integrated into to the community; in the past, many school auditoriums in Idaho have been used for public shows and ceremonies for community members outside the school.
• Larger classrooms with smaller classroom populations: This is to combat the growth in school populations overall. Studies show that smaller classroom populations lead to a more direct and personalized approach with teachers and students.

These measures are mainly due to the influx of students in the region and the growth in Boise, Meridian, and Nampa communities.

Growth in the Community
Boise's population has grown incredibly since the 1990s. In 1990 the population was 125,738. In the last recorded census, Boise's population was over 215,000! This doubling population has resulted in some major growth in Boise, Idaho real estate and Boise homes for sale.

School officials say they expect growth in the area to gradually slow down, but approximately 13,000 homes are currently being planned or are already under construction. The school's construction is underway to match that growth in population, and to keep the Boise school district up to par in terms of quality education. The Boise school district maintains class sizes of under 26 in every age group, they lead the state in test scores, and has routinely been graded very high in 'No Child Left Behind' standards.