Voters may consider Wichita school bond vote again in November
A little more than a year after a $450 million bond issue narrowly failed at the polls, Wichita Public Schools said Tuesday that administrators were informally recommending the school board schedule a November bond vote.
The district announced a series of community feedback sessions to better assess what parents and residents want to see improved in Wichita schools.
The push to revive a bond issue – which the board will consider at its June meeting – comes as officials say a long list of facility needs continues to create problems for the district. Ahead of the 2025 vote, the district cited $1.2 billion in deferred maintenance, and earlier this month the Chester Lewis Academic Learning Center was shuttered before its planned closing date because of structural damage.
“The average age of Wichita Public Schools’ buildings is more than 60 years old,” WPS Strategic Communications Supervisor Susan Arensman wrote in a press release. “Aging infrastructure and changing city dynamics present unique challenges that can’t be addressed with capital funds. WPS believes that students deserve learning environments to match their potential and staff deserve to work in high-quality spaces.”
Although murmurs about a renewed bond have been circulating almost since the 2025 bond issue failed in February 2025, the informal announcement comes less than a month after the district finalized the closing timelines for four elementary schools. If the tentative bond proposal is passed, the first school would close around May 2029. Otherwise, L’Ouverture, OK, Pleasant Valley and Woodland are set to close at the end of the next school year.
Tuesday afternoon’s announcement did not include further details about what would be included in the unofficially resurrected bond issue – or the amount. The district indicated community feedback could help shape the anticipated formal recommendation of a bond referendum at the board’s June 1 meeting.
Ahead of that meeting, eight come-and-go community input sessions are planned at district facilities across the city. They will be held:
- 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, April 7, Horace Mann Dual Language Magnet, 1243 N. Market
- 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, April 8, Southeast High School, 2641 S. 127th St. E.
- 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, April 15, Mueller Elementary, 2500 E. 18th St. N.
- 10:30-11:30 a.m. Friday, April 17, Wichita Public Library Rockwell Branch, 5939 E. 9th St. North.
- 4:30-5:30 p.m. and 7-8 p.m., Monday, April 20, Alvin Morris Administrative Center, 903 S. Edgemoor
- 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, April 21, Northwest High School, 1220 N. Tyler
- 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m. Wednesday, April 22, Alvin Morris Administrative Center, 903 S. Edgemoor.
- 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, April 22, Chisholm Trail Elementary, 6015 Independence, Park City
- 5-7 p.m. Thursday, April 23, Truesdell Middle School, 2463 S. Glenn
The April 20 meetings held at the Alvin Morris Administrative Center will take place both before and after a tri-governmental meeting, which will be held there from 5:30-7 p.m., Arensman wrote in the press release.
Participants will be invited to learn about and provide feedback on some potential school improvement projects developed by the district, as well as use the “Build a Bond” tool to draft project proposals with their district priorities.
Additional information about the tentatively proposed bond will be presented at the April 6 BOE meeting, with a formal bond referendum recommendation expected to be made at the board’s June 1 meeting.
This story was originally published March 31, 2026 at 5:19 PM.
