Despite numerous attempts, in 2022, Chapel Hill Independent School District (CHISD) hadn’t passed a bond election in 15 years, resulting in significant safety concerns and inadequate facilities for their students. Seeing the great need for better schools, a group of parents, grandparents, and business owners came together to start Bulldog Strong, a Political Action Committee dedicated to supporting a bond to fund much-needed new facilities.
Just two months before the May 2022 election, Bulldog Strong brought on the CWJ team to provide strategic advice and guidance. With a clear game plan and hundreds of volunteer hours, the group fell just 42 votes short of passing the bond. Although the bond didn’t pass, the momentum built by Bulldog Strong and the fact that it came less than 50 votes shy of passing led CHISD to go back to voters the following May.
CWJ again worked with Bulldog Strong on the May 2023 campaign. Keeping roughly the same game plan, but tweaking it with a few lessons learned resulted in a huge win for the team. The bond, consisting of three propositions, passed with 56%, 53.5%, and 55% support, all significant wins, especially considering the community had failed four bond elections over the previous 16 years.
This partnership with Bulldog Strong highlights CWJ’s ability to get up and running quickly – with just a two-month turnaround for the 2022 election, as well as the team’s ability to be tenacious and flexible to accomplish a goal.