Below are answers to the most frequently asked questions about the Long Range Facilities Plan. If you do not see the answer to your question, visit our Ask a Question page to submit your own.
Aren’t old school buildings good enough?
There are two fundamental reasons why school buildings in Duluth needed a significant infrastructure overhaul:
- Outdated school buildings. The average age of Duluth’s school buildings is 54 years old – and it shows. More than 60% of school space doesn’t meet modern safety and education standards, resulting in over 1,600 deficiencies in areas such as classroom facilities, air and water quality and handicap accessibility. Most classrooms don’t meet state standards in terms of square footage and there aren’t enough properly equipped science labs to serve a modern curriculum. Most of our schools were built when security wasn’t a significant concern. Unfortunately, it is now a serious issue that all districts need to address.
- Declining enrollment. Student enrollment in Duluth Public Schools has declined by over 50 percent in the last 20 years. Not only does that mean we receive fewer state education dollars (since state funding is based on a per-pupil model), it also means we are currently paying to heat, maintain and insure old, inefficient school classrooms and buildings we don’t even use. This is a drain on precious resources that can be better spent on new teachers, smaller class sizes and more a robust curriculum for Duluth students.
The Long Range Facilities Plan will bring Duluth Public Schools into the 21st century, providing students, families and the entire community with the modern learning facilities we need.