RPS Bond Proposal 2025

Building for the future

Providing safe and functional spaces that support and enhance educational programs.

• Add air-conditioning to all remaining schools that need it.
• Improve safety and security by installing electronic door locks for all classrooms.
• Enhance entry circulation and safety by improving students' experiences and strengthen safety at Rockford HS and East Rockford MS.
• Gyms and/or cafeterias will be added to all remaining elementary schools to allow all to have separate gym and cafeteria spaces.
• Update aging infrastructure, such as: mechanical, electrical, plumbing, roofs, and outdated systems.
• Enhance outdoor facilities (restrooms, seating, entry/exit) to improve community experience.
• Update technology infrastructure. 
• Playground equipment upgrades to all remaining schools.
• Replace aging buses to maintain the replacement cycle to keep the bus fleet modern and safe. 

Advancing excellence

Creating learning environments that enhance innovation and opportunity. 

• Performing Arts Center renovation: new seats, stage, walls and interior improvements. 
• Construction of the Ram Center: indoor turf fieldhouse for athletics, fine arts and community recreation. Classroom spaces for digital media, sports marketing and business programming. 
• Career exploration classrooms at Rockford HS: expanding hands-on learning through Robotics, Skilled Trades, STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) and Health Sciences. 
• Enhance students' experiences: renovating student-centered collaboration spaces. 
• Early childhood renovations: updating spaces to enhance programs for our youngest learners and to enhance safety. 
• Update educational technology.

RAMS XII Strategic Plan

Rooted in community conversations which involves hundreds of stakeholders, including students.

Prioritizing student readiness: The 2025 Bond Proposal would further strategic pillars and priorities, which are: Academic Excellence, Wellness and Preparedness, Social Responsibility and Community Engagement, Collaborative Culture, and Organizational Effectiveness. 

Community Committee

Gathering community input: A wide cross-section of community members formed a Community Input Committee with district staff. The Committee met five times to evaluate opportunities across the district, provide feedback, and make a recommendation to the Board of Education regarding facility improvements. 

Ongoing Stakeholder Conversations

Validation of input and alignment was established by having continual conversations to ensure a variety of ideas and voices were included in creating the proposal. 

Ballot Language:

ROCKFORD PUBLIC SCHOOLS BOND PROPOSAL

Shall Rockford Public Schools, Kent County, Michigan, borrow the sum of not to exceed Two Hundred Thirty Million Dollars ($230,000,000) and issue its general obligation unlimited tax bonds, therefor, in one or more series, for the purpose of:

           equipping, re-equipping, furnishing and refurnishing school buildings and facilities; remodeling,        erecting and acquiring school buildings, facilities and additions to school buildings and facilities; acquiring, installing, equipping and re-equipping school buildings for instructional technology; purchasing school buses; and acquiring, preparing, developing, improving and equipping athletic fields, play fields, playgrounds, structures, facilities and sites?

The following is for informational purposes only:

     The estimated millage that will be levied for the proposed bonds in 2026 is .73 mill ($0.73 on each $1,000 of taxable valuation) for a 0.00 mills net increase over the prior year's levy. The maximum number of years the bonds of any series may be outstanding, exclusive of any refunding, is thirty (30) years. The estimated simple average annual millage anticipated to be required to retire this bond debt is 2.59 mills ($2.59 on each $1,000 of taxable valuation). 

(Pursuant to State law, expenditure of bond proceeds must be audited and the proceeds cannot be used for repair or maintenance costs, teacher, administrator or employee salaries, or other operating expenses.)

Voting Information: 

Polls open Tuesday, November 4, 2025 at 7:00 am until 8:00 pm. 

You can vote absentee! Ballots are available as early as September 25.

Find more voting information at: Michigan Voting Info

As a district, we actively manage debt by monitoring opportunities for refinancing, which reduce interest costs and lower the tax burden on residents. By issuing debt in series and refinancing when market conditions are favorable, the district has saved millions and maintained a strong AA bond rating. This approach promotes long-term fiscal sustainability while supporting education.

We issue debt in series.

Over the past 25 years, Rockford Public Schools has refinanced its bond debt to reduce interest costs and enhance its long-term fiscal health. 

• Refinancing involves retiring existing, more expensive, and higher-interest bonds with new bonds issued at lower rates - a standard practice for districts when market conditions are favorable. This results in interest expense savings to the district.
• The district has reduced its outstanding general obligation debt by $13.5 million year-over-year (from $214.9 million in 2023 to $201.5 million in 2024) and continues to actively manage long-term liabilities.
• By refinancing at opportune times, the district has minimized total interest paid, freeing up future revenue for other community needs. 
• The district's strong AA bond rating for general obligation debt with a stable outlook from Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC reflects this responsible approach. 
• The district regularly reviews its debt portfolio, and board documents highlight the successful refinancing of its debt over the years. For example, in 2024 Rockford refinanced existing bonds, reducing costs and providing long-term tax savings for the community.
• There is state oversight as well as limits. Michigan limits the amount of school debt districts can issue to 15% of total taxable property value. Refinancing strategies help Rockford manage its debt well within these limits. 

The district issues bonds to fund building upgrades that cannot be support by the General Fund or the Sinking Fund revenues alone. Bond funding allows students to benefit from safe and updated spaces. This phased approach has already delivered substantial improvements since voters approved the 2019 bond proposal.

• The district has over 1.55 million square feet of classroom and office space in 18 facilities. In addition, we have 467 acres of land. Through the General Fund and Sinking Fund alone, we do not have the resources to support maintaining or improving these buildings. 
• The November 4, 2025 Bond Proposal would authorize bonds to address long-identified facility needs: HVAC upgrades for elementary schools, modern learning spaces, enhanced safety, and increased access to technology and transportation. These physical improvements directly impact the long-term educational environment and student experience, even though the funds cannot be used for operating expenses.
• The district's phased facilities plan has already generated substantial improvements since the initial 2019 bond proposal. This plan allows bonds to be issued in series, and if approved, bonds issued as part of the 2025 Bond Proposal would also be issued in series to continue this progress.