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• FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020 • JENKSTRIBUNE.COM •
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School bond goes to vote Tuesday By KYLE SALOMON
ksalomon@jenkstribune.com
Jenks Public Schools district voters will hit the polls Tuesday to vote yes or no on the new General Obligation Bond JPS has put together. The amount of the G.O. Bond is $12,487,260. The Jenks school district voters have passed the past 55 of 56 bond issues. In a statement last month, Jenks Public Schools Director of Communications Rob Loeber talked about the importance of community
support. “We are very fortunate that voters in the Jenks school district have turned out and shown their support for Jenks Public Schools. We wouldn’t be where we are today without the support of our voters and stakeholders.” Here is a list of the items the bond will be used to pay for: -District wide equipment, such as items the district needs for day-to-day operations -Facilities management
equipment and repairs -Printing improvements, such as copiers and scanners for numerous buildings in the district -Textbooks and media equipment -Transportation, such as yellow school buses, Trojan Pride buses and district vans -More classroom/instructional space, including improvements to the older part of the Freshman Academy The dollar amount of the bond keeps Jenks Public
Schools below the 10% rule, which states that a school district must not have more than 10% bonded out of its net assessed value. “Think of the classroom and instructional space as like seed money for expansion,” Loeber said in January. “With our current growth rate, we know we are going to need more classroom and instructional space in the near future. We just don’t know what site will need it at this point.”
JENKS SERVICE NOMINEES Congressman Kevin Hern nominated three JHS students for service academies. See on Page 3.
UP TO THE CITIZENS
END OF AN ERA IN JENKS WRESTLING Seniors, coach say goodbye to Frank Herald Fieldhouse. Read story on Page 5.
City Council approves bond resolution for April By KYLE SALOMON
ksalomon@jenkstribune.com
Jenks residents will get their chance to let their voices be heard April 7 after the Jenks City Council approved a general obligation bond resolution Tuesday at the City
TULSA SINGS FINALISTS Two Jenks High School students were selected as finalists for Tulsa Sings. See on Page 9.
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID JENKS, OK PERMIT NO. 7
Council Meeting. The bond resolution, which is set at $20,500,000, included five road projects that will have direct impacts with traffic on south Elm Street, Elwood Ave., downtown Jenks and the incoming outlet mall.
“We are very excited to be at this point,” Jenks Mayor Robert Lee said. “These are much-needed projects and projects that people wanted to see happen. I couldn’t be happier getting the ball rolling on Continued to BOND, Page 10
West Intermediate students get published By HAYDEN TUCKER
htucker@jenkstribune.com
Twenty Jenks West Intermediate students became published authors last month. For the third year, students at West Intermediate wrote books and published them for check out in the library as part of National Novel Writing Month. Students prepared to write their book in October and, as part of ‘NaNoWriMo,’ they had to complete the writing of their books in November. December was spent editing and revising the books.
Once they were complete, students went before their principal in a mock publisher meeting to pitch their books. “The feeling of accomplishment is very gratifying for me to see,” gifted coordinator Alicia Gillean said. “They go from thinking, ‘I can’t write 10 pages,’ to, ‘I just wrote 200 pages.’ I love seeing them push themselves and stretch themselves and have a creative outlet they don’t really have any other way.” The group of 20 is the largest to participate in three years. Through the program, students not only learn grammar and writing skills, but
public speaking and other real-world experiences. Peyton Richardt is in the fifth grade. Her book is called “Shadow Hunting” and it’s about a girl whose sister was taken by people when she was young. When she’s forced to leave her home, she finds herself running away from the same people who took her sister. “My favorite part was the imagination; I could have gone anywhere with my book,” Peyton said. “I didn’t have to be in this tiny box, I could just do whatever.” But it wasn’t always fun for everyone.
Isabella Droemer is also in the fifth grade. Her book, titled “Courage”, is about a boy and his younger sister who discover the fate of the world is in their hands. They have to destroy an evil kingdom and if they don’t, the world as they know it will be destroyed in turn. Isabella found herself in trouble when she caught a case of writer’s block. “I was in the middle of a chapter and I just sat there and thought, ‘what do I do?’ I couldn’t figure out anything. I had to take a break for three Continued to NOVELS, Page 10