The Superintendent's Blog

It's easy to imagine a square foot. Now think about 3.8 million of them. We’re talking about 66 football fields laid side by side, more space than all the shops in the Mall of America. It’s also the size of Millard if you put all 35 schools together. We are that big.

When you consider us that way, it becomes clear why bond issues exist in the first place. Roofs and HVAC systems wear out. Doors, windows, and safety features need to be replaced. The one thing projects like this have in common? We barely notice them unless they don’t work. We don’t go through our day thinking about the doors that open easily or roofs solidly overhead. They are just there, and that’s exactly how we hope to keep them.

That is why we held the 2020 bond, which amazingly passed in a time when our buildings were actually closed because of the pandemic. Millard still voted to make sure their neighborhood schools stood strong. I am so grateful that our community understands the importance of maintaining resources. It is very much in keeping with the fiscally responsible way Millard has always operated, and it continues to pay off. As the work wraps up, the Board recently received a final report. I wanted to make sure you also had this information.

If you read nothing else, please know all of the projects promised in the 2020 bond will be completed within the budget promised to voters.

The work spans the district. Eighteen schools have received major updates and hundreds of individual projects have been completed. These include more than 50 HVAC related projects, 28 roofing and exterior building projects, and 18 intercom, fire alarm and data wiring projects, and numerous paving projects. Some of this work was able to be done while schools were in session, but much of it had to be fit into a very tight schedule during the summer, which takes coordination and flexibility from a lot of people behind the scenes.

It has been wonderful to see the outcomes, both for our community and for the surrounding neighborhoods. For instance, after noticing our newly renovated secure entrance, one visitor remarked that he hadn't realized we had built a new school in an established neighborhood. We shared that the building had actually been there since 1964!

These renovations matter to the students and staff, and also the neighborhood. We want to be good neighbors and help maintain everyone’s property values. That’s one of the reasons I want to make sure everyone understands what we are doing, because again, so much of this work is easy to miss, but all together, these projects represent a significant investment in Millard’s facilities that allows us to continue to provide high quality educational experiences in a cost efficient manner.

I want to stress the cost efficient part. Meeting the budget promised is significant, particularly because at the outset we said it might be necessary to increase the levy. That didn’t happen. In fact, the opposite did. In 2019, the year before the bond, the levy was at 14.00 cents. In the five years since, the Board has voted unanimously to lower the levy four times. Today it is 11.50 cents. They’ve done this through careful planning and a steady commitment to being responsible with taxpayer dollars.

Millard’s most valuable resource is people, but facilities absolutely shape the conditions for learning. When buildings are well maintained, systems work as they should, and safety upgrades are in place, students and staff can focus on what they are here to do. Our community recently passed the 2025 bond. Planning is underway now with the first phase of work slated to begin in the summer of 2026. We remain committed to completing this work on time and on budget.

I know this isn’t the most exciting blog. It certainly can’t come close to a good piece about inclement weather days! But I appreciate you taking the time to read, because it is very important. I hope to be writing a similar update to you in five years, perhaps during a snow day.