School bonds for Wilson, Okla., and Sulphur schools passed during Tuesday's special elections.
In Sulphur, two proposed bonds, one for construction and another for transportation, passed by about 87% each. In Wilson, a transportation bond to purchase buses passed by 84%.
The Wilson bond will provide $360,000 in transportation funding to buy new buses for the district. Wilson has seven buses, but all of them are at least 18 years old, two of them have been sidelined because of mechanical issues, and the school has resorted to using an outdated activity bus to run bus routes. Most of the current vehicles lack air conditioning.
"We thought we would pass it, we had positive feedback to begin with, but you're always scared of the 'what if,'" Wilson Superintendent Tonya Finnerty said. "The fact that the community supported us was comforting, they know this is a need students have and they supported us to get that passed."
Sulphur had two propositions on the docket, which both passed. The first is a $1,770,000 construction bond to replace the roof at the intermediate building and the flooring in the high school, along with bathrooms renovations throughout the campus. The second is a $55,000 transportation bond to purchase a new activity bus.
"I'd just like to say that our students and faculty are blessed to have such a supportive community," Sulphur Superintendent Paula Crawford said.
Taxes will increase by a fraction of a percent in Wilson, but will remain stationary in Sulphur, as the new bonds will go into effect at the conclusion of a previous construction bond passed in 2008.
