Berne Union Local Schools

Home of the Rockets

Dear BU Community:

First and foremost, I want to thank you for standing with us this past school year as we weathered the pandemic and for your continued support of our operating levy request in May. One of the best things about being part of this community is the way we come together for our school – and this past year has been no exception.

When taking on the role of superintendent, I pledged to improve communication with our community and to be transparent about our decisions– which is the reason for my letter today.

Last month, we met with the architect and construction team for the new school building to understand the impact of the current economy on our plans. At that time, we learned that not only have construction materials costs increased exponentially, but also that these materials are at critically low levels. This means that beginning construction now would be incredibly risky and costly.

To be good stewards of your tax dollars – and your trust – we believe the best course of action at this time is to pause and reconvene with our construction team in July, when we hope to have a clearer picture of construction costs and supplies. At that time, we will provide another update to the community about the timeline for construction of the new building.

In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me directly. Thank you for being part of our wonderful BU community!

Jon Parker
Superintendent of Schools