After experiencing significant growth in the community, the Walton-Verona School Board approved the Intermediate School.
The Local Planning Commission (LPC), which was created by the Walton-Verona Board of Education, met multiple times from October 2020 to January 2021.
There was then a public hearing in February 2021 to draft The Districts Facilities Plan (DFP) which laid out any and all construction and renovation projects in the district for the next five years, and a new intermediate school was the first priority.
In summer 2021, the Kentucky Board of Education approved the plan.
The enrollment number of the district’s elementary schools is 730, which makes up 38% of the entire district. Current growth projections put their district enrollment at 3.4% annual growth. 2,000 students are projected within the next two years, over 2,500 over the next 10 years and over 3,000 within the next 15.
Since space is so limited, they currently have a mobile unit where a class meets, and this time next year, two classes will have to meet in that unit. On the Walton campus, eighth grades classes currently meet in the high school wing.
“Those that have lived in Walton-Verona all their lives can attest that our community has experienced significant growth during the past 20 years,” per the Walton-Verona Independent Schools website. “One of the things that makes our school district unique is that we are the geographically largest independent district in Kentucky at 26.5 square miles. So, despite the growth of the past 20 years, we still have lots of room to grow even more.”
To put it into perspective, most independent school districts are three to five miles in size and land-locked.
The new school will house fourth and fifth graders to alleviate crowding in the elementary schools. The school’s design will allow it to expand as needed to accommodate future growth.
A future third phase could even provide the option to convert the site into a new Walton-Verona High School.
Superintendent, Dr. Matt Baker, emphasized to LINK nky the need for smaller class sizes and the importance this new school holds for lasting impacts.
“This decision by our Board of Education reflects our commitment to maintain smaller learning environments where every student is known and valued by the adults in their school,” Baker said. “I commend our Board of Education for providing this community with much-needed additional classroom space, and for having the foresight to proactively plan for the next 20-30 years as Southern Boone County continues to grow and evolve.”
