Part III Teachers highlight High School issues amid renovation talks

What will the new high school look like

Editors note: We asked three teachers for their thoughts. This is the third of a series of articles concerning the Webster City High School project; considering what is needed, and how the building has functioned for the students, teachers and staff.

Part Three - Tony Bussan

By Robert E. Oliver

A lot of good people are working on ideas for improving Webster City High School, if voters agree in a referendum scheduled for September 8, 2026. An advisory committee of educators, school board, and city staff members, parents, and citizens, held its fourth planning meeting recently. We wanted to make sure some of the people that would be most affected by any change in the building had their say - teachers. For this series, we turned to three teachers with years of experience in Webster City schools. This is the final interview and like the others, he had plenty to say.

Tony Bussan - 23 Years Teaching and Coaching in Webster City Schools

After graduating from the University of Iowa in 1983, Tony Bussan took a job teaching fifth grade at Sunset Heights Elementary School in Webster City. He is remembered by many students as especially adept at teaching math, a difficult subject for many. But he's best remembered as the man who built Webster City cross country into a tour de force in the North Central Conference, and beyond. He took eleven consecutive boys' cross country teams to state from 1995-2006. Athletes he coached in track were the winners of 11 state titles.

You may not know though, that "Bus," a nickname given him by his students, may know more about the physical condition of WCHS than anyone in town, other than maintenance staff.

Like many teachers raising a family, Bus needed summertime employment for the extra income it offered his family. From 1985-2010, that's 28 summers, he worked for the school district. He was on the team that replaced all the windows in the original classroom building. He helped build the first football concession stand. He dug up the high school parking lot so new steam pipes could be installed to convey hot water heat to the far reaches of the campus. He ran cables through classroom ceilings so monitors and computers could be installed.

Since 2017, he's driven school buses, taking academic, club and athletic groups to schools around the state. That's enabled him to compare facilities in those schools with ours.

Bus isn't kidding when he says, "I've been in and out of all buildings owned by the district." That makes his opinions on what priorities might guide redevelopment of the high school.

In no particular order, here are some of his ideas.

"A new weight room is a much-needed facility, if our athletic teams expect to remain competitive."

"Accessibility remains a major issue in high school. It was built before ADA laws were written, and today we're only partially compliant." He cited hazards to a wheelchair-bound student, or one with a cast on a leg, in getting out of the school in case of a fire.

"With no elevator and only a chair lift, the odds are against them," he said.

"Air conditioning is a must. We've tried fans. We had maintenance open second-floor windows at night to cool things down. Nothing really worked. It's difficult to teach or learn in extreme heat."

"The district has done a fine job over the years in maintaining the high school, but it's no longer cost-effective to keep investing in an outdated, inefficient building."

"We're not delivering the opportunities our choir and band students deserve. Those rooms have been obsolete for at least 20 years. Our students can't reach their potential in such facilities."

"The fix for the track is to put it into a stadium complex, around a football field that can also be used for soccer. We had that idea in the '90s, but couldn't raise the money to pay for it. We refurbished our track in 1994, knowing it had a 20-year lifespan. Now it needs work again."

"Our mission at the high school is to provide a foundation for student success," he said.

"You want your facility to enhance learning, not hinder it. Teachers and students will adapt, but better facilities can enable better learning," he concludes. " We shouldn't be happy until we're sure we can give them an education that meets their needs."