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November 20, 2009

Demographic study to benefit school, city

By Nathan Straus

nstraus@jacksonvilleprogress.com



Jacksonville Independent School District Board members voted to hire School District Strategies to perform a demographic study for the school, and the Jacksonville Economic Development Corp. has taken an interest in the project.

JISD Superintendent Dr. Joe Wardell said of the $24,000 being paid to the second lowest of a group of four or five bidders, $5,000 will come from JEDCO funds.

“They have never done this before. Both groups feel they can get some good information out of this,” Wardell said.

Darrell Prcin, JEDCO president, said the organization will be able to utilize parts of the demographic study.

“We can use 20-25 percent of the information, so we’re paying 20-25 percent of the cost,” he said.

Prcin said it will aid JEDCO with information regarding housing subdivisions, retail and education.

“Education and economic development go hand-in-hand. It draws people in,” Prcin said.

He also said this year the school asked JEDCO to discuss the study. The JEDCO board then voted to assist the school monetarily.

“It will hopefully help us move forward on any future bond elections,” Prcin said.

Wardell said the school district enrollment currently stands at around 4,900 students.

“Enrollment-wise we’re 90 students over this date last year,” he said.

Of the students, the most recent demographic study notes, 43 percent are Hispanic, 22 percent are African American and 35 percent are Caucasian. The previous study was performed by the Center for Quality Leadership, which had a bid of close to $21,500.

“We look forward to getting that. We will use the information to look at what to do for future employees and facilities,” Wardell said.

For example, the school will need additional space if the study shows a strong trend toward growth. An increase in Hispanic students might also signal a need for more bilingual teachers, he said.

However, he expects the numbers will not shift much.

“One thing they’ll give thoughts on is what will happen if Lake Columbia gets built,” he said.

The demographic study will estimate what the district will look like in 10 years as far as enrollment and ethnicity goes. The school will break the figures down to two five-year blocks of time, he said.

Wardell said he expects the group to be completed around late February or early March.

Demographic studies are not required by the state, but Wardell said at some point in development all schools perform similar studies.

The Center for Quality Leadership completed the last demographic study in December 2004.

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