Big Changes Ahead for Waterloo Schools After 2024 Vote

While millions of people all across the country were focused on the Presidential election, many residents of the Cedar Valley were also contemplating a ballot referendum.

When some Iowa voters went to fill out their ballot for the 2024 election, they got to decide the fate of the Waterloo Community School District.

Now that the dust has settled, we finally know what will be the next steps for one of the largest school districts in Iowa.

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According to an April report from the Waterloo Community School District, talks of consolidating the schools has been up in the air since 2012.

In December of 2023, the WCSD Board of Education unanimously approved a motion to " conduct a comprehensive exploration of the educational needs" of their high school students.

Officials were able to determine that these students were in need of better opportunities.

“It has become increasingly clear to us that the current age and structure of our high schools, spread out across three campuses, has limited our ability to provide our students with the same access to opportunities,” stated Waterloo Community School District Superintendent Dr. Smith.

“The most glaring example of this can be found in the current barriers that prohibit the majority of our students from accessing the Waterloo Career Center.”

Waterloo High School Merger Plan

Earlier this year, Waterloo residents pushed to get a $165 million consolidation plan on the 2024 election ballot.

This plan would merge Waterloo East and West into one new high school which will be located at a new facility, according to reports.

It will be set up in the Central Middle Building, according to KCRG.

Then those old buildings that used to house high school students would be transformed into two separate middle schools by the 2028-2029 school year.

Did This Ballot Referendum Get the Approval of the Public?

According to a report from KCRG-TV, Waterloo residents approved the multi-million dollar merger plan. In order to get this proposal passed, it needed to get at least fifty percent.

This measure received a 59.7% approval vote.

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