EVERETT — For Kya Nethercot, the $240 million bond measure for Mukilteo School District isn’t about money.
It’s personal.
“It is really important to our security and safety in our school,” the 17-year old Mariner High School senior said. “It is going to allow for new classroom door locks from the inside and a bunch of other features that I feel like we should already have in times like these.”
There’s also the matter of overcrowding. All of the district’s schools are at or over capacity.
“The lunchroom is crowded. There’s overcrowding upstairs in front of the elevator for students with disabilities,” Kya said. “Overcrowding affects all students, no matter from what background.”
Of the $240 million Mukilteo measure on the Feb. 11 special election ballot, $160 million is earmarked for additions or major modifications to Challenger, Horizon, Discovery, Mukilteo and Serene Lake elementaries, Explorer Middle School and Mariner.
Ballots can be placed in designated drop boxes until 8 p.m. Feb. 11.
Under state law, passing a bond measure requires 60% of the vote. A simple majority isn’t enough.
If the bond passes, the property tax bill on a $500,000 home would go up about $47 a year.
The bond package would fund projects from 2021 through 2026 in the district that serves about 15,000 students. About 900 more students are expected in the next six years.
“The schools need infrastructure to support our kids’ education,” said Andrew Vuong, whose oldest of three children is a student at Endeavour Elementary School. “It’s critical and pivotal for the next generation.”
Endeavour is in good shape, compared to other schools.
“Equity is important, not just for my own school, but for the whole region. Not just for my own kids, for all the kids in our area,” Vuong said.
The bond has $12.3 million for security upgrades at all schools, $2 million for technology infrastructure, $52.4 million for facilities (HVAC, roofing, flooring, plumbing) and $13.3 million for fields and courts.
Supporters have taken the campaign to the streets with “Vote Yes For Kids” yard signs and waving signs along the road.
Six school districts are seeking approval of bonds, capital levies or both in the Feb. 11 special election. They include bond measures for $600 million in Edmonds, $470 million in Snohomish and $71.5 million in Arlington.
At 17, Kya can’t vote, but she makes her voice heard, writing stories as editor of the student newspaper, The Mariner Compass.
She also talks to adults.
“I tell everyone I know about it,” she said.
Andrea Brown: abrown@heraldnet.com; 425-339-3443. Twitter @reporterbrown.
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