IT’S TIME TO VOTE! Here’s where to go:

Early voting is already underway at the County Clerk’s office inside the Washington County Courthouse.  Polls are open any weekday before Tuesday, September 15th from 8:00 am – 4:30 pm.  While the parking deck is under construction, you can take advantage of a shuttle running between the Central United Methodist Church parking deck (on Lafayette)and the courthouse or on-street parking surrounding the courthouse.

Election Day is Tuesday September 15th.  While most polling locations within the Fayetteville School District will be open, some outside of the Fayetteville city limits have been consolidated.  The list below includes the polling locations, including address, that will be open on Tuesday with each of the precincts voting there.

Get the facts about the economic impact of the new Fayetteville High School on our community, in terms of real estate values, economic development initiatives, recruiting and retaining a workforce, and developing a strategic educational niche for Fayetteville! Join local experts for a panel discussion!

WHEN:  Thursday, September 3, from 5:30-6:30 pm
WHERE:  East Square Plaza lobby (former Bank of America building)

Panel discussion featuring:

• Linda Auman, chief academic officer, Fayetteville Public Schools
• Lee Ann Kizzar, Washington County Assessor
• Dr. Lisa Morstad, chief financial officer, Fayetteville Public Schools
• Dr. Kathy Deck, director, UA Center for Business and Economic Research
• Don Marr, chief of staff, City of Fayetteville

Come show your support for a new high school in Fayetteville at the Get Organized and Energized event!

Date: Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Time: 5:30pm – 7:00pm
Location: One East Plaza, on the square
City/Town: Fayetteville, AR

It’s going to take a lot of hard work to build a new high school and we need your help to accomplish that. At this event
you’ll find out exactly how you can help and will be able to sign up for shifts to work.

Join us for special entertainment by FHS band members and spirit groups starting at 5:30pm

At 6:00 pm we’ll hear remarks from Mayor Lioneld Jordan to get us all psyched up and excited about this election and the benefits it will have on our community.

Spread the word to friends and neighbors to help us fill the lobby to show our community spirit and support for a new high school!

Note:
Please have your kids wear their school t-shirts to show support for all the great schools in our community.

You will be able to pick up yard signs and sign up for campaign activities to help us win on September 15th.

See you there!

AUGUST 19th marks the FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL for (most) Fayetteville Public Schools. On that day, Fayetteville High School will enter it’s 57th year of service to our community. Throughout that time thousands of students walked those halls, learned in those classrooms, and graduated with an excellent education.

Now, 57 years after it first opened, we have the opportunity to continue the excellence of Fayetteville High School by building a 21st Century learning center to provide our children with the technology and skills they need to be successful today and the adaptability to provide the same for decades to come.

As summer slows down, and school speeds up, now is the time to encourage everyone you know to vote FOR A+ Stronger Fayetteville!

Grady Jim Robinson wrote an editorial that appeared in today’s edition of the Northwest Arkansas Times spelling out some very good arguments in favor of building a new, 21st Century Fayetteville High School.

Robinson says in part:

You would think the single most important responsibility of any community is to provide education for its youth no matter how much it costs. Our sister cities to the north have found a way to build new state-of-the art schools, gymnasiums, auditoriums and stadiums.

For most this argument resonates the loudest. We need to provide our children with the best education we can. The current high school that was built to serve our community as it existed more than 55 years ago. Now, our community has nearly 4 times as many residents and a high school that just hasn’t kept up with the pace of growth. We have great students and great teachers, but the current high school cannot give them state-of-the-art facilities or technology. The crowded band and choir rooms are inadequate for the size of our nationally recognized fine arts programs.

True, this new high school will require an investment on the part of our community, as Robinson says:

We can always find the money to do what is really necessary to keep the city of Fayetteville, and Fayetteville schools, among the very best in the state. Maybe it will mean a few more dollars on your property tax bill each year. Perhaps $100? Or, if you are really fortunate and have vast property, the millage could cost you a few hundred dollars a year. I suggest you think about those generations who came before you. Who built your school? Who sacrificed for you a half-century ago to see that you had the best possible opportunity for education?

Thanks to Grady Jim Robinson for his vocal support! Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday was July 15th.  In any other summer it might just be another day of work or, for the lucky few, a day at the pool or on vacation.  This year however, July 15th was a very important day.

MONDAY, AUGUST 17th, is the last day to register to vote in the election on September 15th.  This means that if you support the plan to build our kids a 21st Century learning center and you are new to the area, you will be 18 before September 15th, or you just aren’t registered to vote, then you have 1 MONTH to register.

2 ways to register:

1) Download a copy of the form at this link (click here) and mail it to:

Karen Combs Pritchard
County and Probate Clerk
Washington County
280 N. College, suite 300
Fayetteville, AR 72701

2) Drop by the Washington County Clerk’s office in the Fayetteville Court House (located on North College across from the Square) and register!

2 MONTHS from yesterday, SEPTEMBER 15TH, is ELECTION DAY! It’s time to get to work talking to voters at the door and on the phones.  It’s time to kick the campaign into high gear!  Please fill out the information form under the Get Involved tab and let us know what you want to do.  We need a variety of skills to make this campaign successful.

We’re glad that you are as excited about making A Stronger Fayetteville as we are.  OUR KIDS, OUR COMMUNITY, and OUR FUTURE depend on it!  With your help and YOUR VOTE 2 months from today, the victory party will be over and we’ll begin building A Stronger Fayetteville!

Visit www.facebook.com/voteforastrongerfayetteville and join the social network engaged in moving Fayetteville High School into the 21st Century.

Community Joins Forces for a 21^st Century Fayetteville High School

Parents, teachers, business leaders, and school officials launch effort to build new Fayetteville High School

FAYETTEVILLE – A diverse coalition of Fayetteville citizens gathered in the front lobby of Fayetteville High School Tuesday to launch an effort to build a 21^st Century Fayetteville High School.  The proposed new facility, designed with input from the entire community, includes a learning center that incorporates advanced technologies, a performing arts center and a campus better integrated into the neighborhood.  These facilities will better prepare students for 21^st Century jobs and provide an incentive for businesses to locate in the area.

Supporters of the proposal to build a new high school on the site of the current Fayetteville High School say that a new learning center is essential for our community.  Citing facilities that cannot support today’s technology, a cafeteria that is past capacity, and a lack of adequate performance space for the band and choir, the campaign committee made their case for the new school facility.

“The current Fayetteville High School was built in the 1950s, to meet the demands of our community over 55 years ago.  Back then only 20,000 people lived in Fayetteville.  Now, nearly 70,000 of us call Fayetteville home,” said Campaign Co-Chair Missy Kincaid.  “We need to invest today in a learning center that can accommodate our growing population and provide our children with the education they need to succeed in a 21^st Century workforce.”

Campaign co-chairs Missy Kincaid and Fred Vorsanger said they have organized a campaign committee that represents the diverse community, made up of parents, seniors, city officials, business leaders and University of Arkansas officials.  Vorsanger said that the campaign committee will make a deliberate effort to reach every constituency in the community and make the case that a new school will benefit everyone in Fayetteville.  [NOTE:  A list of campaign committee members will be released in the coming days]

Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce President Steve Clark said, “This new learning center will not only prepare our children and grandchildren for 21^st Century jobs, but also pave the way for new businesses to locate in our community.  Businesses are attracted to communities with a strong public education foundation to prepare the next generation as well as to attract highly qualified employees.  This new facility will make Fayetteville stronger all the way around.”

The Fayetteville School Board voted recently to authorize construction of the new high school, the issue now goes before the voters during a special election on September 15^th, 2009.

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Don’t forget to get out and vote FOR A Stronger Fayetteville on September 15th.

AUGUST 17TH is the last day to register to be eligible to vote in the election on Tuesday, September 15th. To register drop by the Washington County Clerk’s Office in the County Courthouse on North College Avenue across from the Square OR click here to find instructions on how to register.