Ninth-grade campus. Athletic Complex and Stadium. Aquatic center. Student activity center.
These are all proposed items with the new 2024 bond. The school district is calling for a $218.1M bond, with a potential maximum 7.9% tax increase. This bond will be voted for in May 2024.
Students at the high school feel the expansion is necessary since many students sometimes need seats.
“On the first day of school, I walked into my English class,” junior Sol Gonzalez said. “I walked from the agriculture building, so I was almost late and once I stepped into the room, I already had no seat. I believe the class had 42 students and I barely found a chair to the side.”
Beyond high school students, middle schoolers feel this bond would change the future of their high school for them and the generations to come.
“The student activity center with a media room would be very beneficial,” 8th grader Bailey McDonald said. “The extra classrooms that would be added would be perfect for the new freshman since I’ve heard from multiple teachers that we will be the largest entering freshman class. The center would change our school experience because fewer classes would be crowded which means fewer kids to work with each period, giving the teachers more time to help individual students.”
Some students find concerns in the proposed student room.
“It’s possible that the teachers would try to make it fun and the students would mess it up,” senior Natalia Ballbuena said. “I’m hoping for the best since I graduate this year because many students still have to attend the schools and use the facilities.”
Senior swimmers here also believe that this bond will greatly impact wildkats, specifically proposition C: the aquatic center.
“The aquatic center in proposition C is probably one of the most needed additions that Willis needs.” senior Addison Lyons said. “The swim team practices at the Conroe Recreational Center at the westside pool every morning, which is farther away from the high school.”
Proposition D excites students, especially those involved in sports and extracurriculars.
“As a powerlifter, I find the weight room important,” junior Anthony Ormeno said. “In nine years, the district is supposed to add 10,000 students and with one weight room, it could get pretty crowded. Two weight rooms would help any overflowing classes that involve the weight room.”
Out of all propositions, students have certain favorites over others.
“If I had to choose just one, I would choose Prop B,” Lyons said. “Because football and athletics are very big parts of Willis and the foundation that creates the bonds between the community.”
