The Greene County School Board of Directors met in special session on Wednesday.

The Board approved a resolution for a special election to issue a $20 million general obligation bond.  A facilities committee collected 81 more signatures than the required 168 for the bond request to be placed on the ballot for special election in September.

The facilities committee has determined that the school district should reduce its number of buildings to two, which committee member Sam Harding says could help the district save money overall.

“We’re spread over too many buildings right now and that over time, it’s going to just break the district financially.  So, with the way the state (government) appropriates money at the current rate of one or two percent, it’s pretty obvious that we better consolidate our expenses as much as we can.”

The proposed bond includes making additions to the elementary and high school buildings in Jefferson.  Superintendent Tim Christensen says the plans are to build four new classrooms at the elementary school and make that building into a pre-kindergarten through fourth grade building and add another 24 classrooms, plus offices for administration, a competition gym and a commons area onto the high school for a fifth through twelfth grade building.

Christensen adds that the District will release more information as the special election gets closer.  By law, school districts in Iowa are only allowed to release factual information to educate the public and not slant the information one way or another.