Unlike students and most staff, Onalaska Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Fraga hasn’t had a summer away from campus. There has been far too much to get done.
“People ask me how I am doing, and I tell them that I am never bored,” he said on a hot afternoon while walking across the campus parking lot. “I stole that line from a former supervisor, but it is true. We have a lot going on. It is all good things.”
Those who have driven by the school know that a few trees are missing from the lot next to the junior/senior high. A few even called the fire department upon seeing smoke. Crews have cleared the land in preparation for a new high school that will be constructed over the next 16 months.
The current junior/senior high will become a middle school. The original plan was for that facility to house grades 5-8, and Fraga says that those make sense when splitting the numbers evenly amongst the schools.
Onalaska Elementary currently holds pre-K through sixth grade. That has the campus a little overcrowded for the moment. The new school should relieve some of that pressure.
“We'll bring sixth grade over here at the very least and have sixth, seventh and eighth – maybe fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth,” Fraga said. “Looking at our growth, if we can stay with the same growth pattern, probably in 10 or 12 years we are looking at a fourth campus. If they are still keeping me around at that point, I would probably open an early childhood campus. There are a lot of architects that design some really cool things for early childhood, so you would be a pre-K, (Kindergarten and first grade) campus.
“This (new high school) building, when we open, it is built for growth. It is not built for what we have right now, so we will actually open it with a couple of empty rooms. If we continue our current growth, we will be able to start occupying those rooms in four or five years.”
Growth is one of the major catalysts pushing the new campus. Onalaska is the fastest growing area in Polk County, making it one of the fastest in the region. Much of the land that has gone undeveloped is under construction or has plans for neighborhoods. The rising numbers through grade levels signals the need for more space.
“This year's senior class is upper 60s or maybe lower 70s. This year's eighth graders are in the upper 70s. Everybody else is 90s and above. As soon as the senior class graduates, we will grow by 30 kids the following year. Then, it will stay pretty even. We have had a 2-3% year-over-year growth. Right now, we are looking at about 30 more kids than we had last year, which for a district that has about 1,200 students, it is pretty significant growth.”
The largest grade level is on the elementary campus, with over 100 students.
Passing a $42 million bond, Fraga said the district avoided the hassle of portable buildings that would have been inevitable.
“Our community understood the growth and the bond passed with overwhelming support. Portable buildings are a waste of money. You have to purchase them; you never get your money back on them. Basically, as soon as you take possession of them, they are worth nothing. Depending on where you are putting them, you are running utilities to them and leveling stuff off. With state laws now, securing those things is a nightmare.”
With the public recognizing the need, it passed at nearly three quarters approving the bond. That makes Fraga believe the $42 million could have possibly been more. He used the example of basketball games – even before the great success of last season's playoff run to the state semifinals – where crowds were standing room only.
The actual price tag of construction is around $46 million. The school is said to have a healthy fund balance, which will be utilized to make up the difference. The bond has also gained interest of over $1 million.
“I have not had one person talk to me and say they don't think we should do this,” Fraga said. “What it has been mostly in the past year is, ‘When are they going to knock trees down?’ It's taken a while to get to this point, because we passed this bond in May of ‘24, so it has taken a long time to get to where we are. I haven't had anyone complain to me. If it was 74% that passed it, there are 26% of people that don't want it. Maybe they are not ready to speak up because three-fourths of the town does.”
Bonds have had varying levels of success in Onalaska, with the last attempt failing when the school proposed building a track and field facility. The district felt strongly about the need, dipping into the fund balance to cover the costs.
That provoked a few grumbles, but there aren't many Class 3A schools in Texas without a track facility. Most of those tracks encircle a football field, prompting the expected question from curious minds of bringing the state’s most popular sport to the school.
“The answer to that question is not a ‘no,’ but a ‘not right now,’” the superintendent explained.
Football programs are generally $1 million to $1.2 million to get off the ground, which does not include building a fieldhouse, scoreboard or many of the other items Texans expect on Friday nights in the fall.
Plans are for the school to open in January of 2027, with most construction completed the month before.
“This year's juniors will be the first ones to graduate from there,” Fraga said. “We will actually move graduation back from the Commerce Center and hold it in the (new) gym.”
Assuming there is little change in student population, staff hires will be at a minimum. Each campus needs a principal, so an assistant principal from the junior/senior high school will take over as principal, while the current principal will lead the new school of 360-390 students. An assistant principal and counselor will need to be added.
To go along with some of the change, Onalaska simplified its branding. After a contest open to the public, a 2016 Wildcat graduate turned in the winning sketch. The “O” has a different look from other high schools that is usually borrowed from university logos like Oregon or Ohio State. The district has looked into copywriting to ensure it remains one of a kind.
While opening the new campus with a new school year would be preferable, Fraga said it makes no sense to allow a $46 million facility to sit empty for a semester.
“Logistics with staffing and those sorts of things would be easier with a new year, but there are a lot of superintendents in districts that have done mid-year openings that I can just call and say, ‘Walk me through some of the considerations and things I haven't thought about.’
“That first semester, I have already told them it is going to be bumpy. That year, we will move sixth grade over here. The fifth grade is going to stay at the elementary that first semester, and that will give us a little more time to figure it out.”
The elementary school is over capacity by a few dozen students. Grade level populations are now bigger than they’ve ever been, with a few up to 110. Fraga said there is a desire to keep the classroom numbers small, while managing growth and adding staff as numbers dictate and finances allow.
The district will begin celebrating the new high school Friday at 9 a.m., where a groundbreaking ceremony will take place. The public is invited to attend at 1885 FM 3459 in Onalaska.
