Thursday night Ector County ISD Bond Advisory Committee met to narrow down the goals they want to complete. The bond committee has been meeting for the past two months and they have finally narrowed it down  to seven priorities.

Some of the proposals listed is making life cycle improvements like roofing, plumbing, and window replacements for every campus. Another is adding a new high school that would hold up to 2,500 students. Following that proposal is to convert Ector middle school back to being Ector High School.

Now, if all seven priorities pass that would cost over three hundred million dollars. That is a lot of money to be voted on but, the district said it is necessary to spend every dime to keep up with an overcrowded system.

Mike Marrow is a ECISD Bond Committee member. Marrow said the goal they are working towards is decreasing the number of students at both Permian High School and Odessa High School.

“The process is we toured some of the facilities,” said Morrow. “Drove by some of them but actually walked through some of them and a lot of feedback I received from school district employees was how congested the hallways were.”

Morrow said touring the schools and talking to district employees made it easier for board members to agree on proposals presented. 

Kendra Herrera is the Principal at Ector Middle school. Herrera said it would be nice to build a new middle school and have the community and ECISD vote on that decision.

“Yeah, there is a lot of history of Ector returning as a high school,” said Herrera.

Ector middle school’s history is rich because it use to be a high school in the 1950’s. However, during the 50’s the state ruled Ector High school to be segregated which prompted the state to shut them down.

Mike Adkins is the Public Information Officer for ECISD. Adkins said when the state shut down Ector High school they only had two high schools open in the Permian Basin.

“The school district converted it to a junior high,” said Adkins. “Then the students from Ector were split up between Odessa High and Permian to help racially balance both of those two high schools.”

Now, if Ector Middle school does change back into a high school then a new middle school will have to be built in it’s place.

“I believe that that’s a feasible option to take to the community,” said Herrera. “Ultimately it is in the communities hands and this advisory committee in the boards hands to decide on that.”