West Jordan residents divided on district split

WEST JORDAN — When it comes to survival in education, cities within the Jordan School District seem to be thinking the same thing: It's every town for itself.

West Jordan residents have joined the ranks of those intending to vote on whether they will remain in the district — if the east side effectively separates — or if they will create a district of their own.

Officials in West Jordan, the largest west-side city in the Jordan District, have been presenting pros and cons of the proposed West Jordan split at a series of poorly attended town meetings over the past two weeks, but some residents are saying Nov. 6 is too early to make a decision.

"We're jumping ship," resident Sharon Auger, who works for the Jordan School District, told City Council members at a public meeting to discuss the issue Tuesday night. "We're being scared."

City officials admit they don't know exactly how much it will cost residents to start a new school district. But Mayor David Newton says the money the city's residents will have to pay anyway, if the east side leaves the Jordan School District, it would be better spent on a district that only serves West Jordan.

West Jordan recently completed a feasibility study into the possibility of forming a new school district. It determined households would have to pay $69 more each year in property taxes to support a West Jordan district, although that amount is not set in stone.

"We don't know what it will end up costing," Councilwoman Melissa Johnson told an audience of some 50 residents who attended Tuesday night's meeting. "I get nervous when I sign over a blank check to a government. It's a little premature to be voting on a school-district split when so many of the important questions remain unanswered."

Resident Steve Bickmore, a teacher in the Jordan School District, said he thinks a new school district will cost substantially more than the city anticipates.

"This is a complicated thing," Bickmore said. "West Jordan could run their own school district, but it would be more expensive with a lower economic base and you would sacrifice for years."

Newton says he supports a new school district because it is unknown what legislative changes will happen in the next session that would prevent the city from ever leaving the Jordan School District. The mayor also says a new district could lead to smaller classroom sizes and better education opportunities.