In 1952, population growth in the Rochester area made changes in local school organization necessary. A special election in December 1952 consolidated the rural school districts of Brooklands, Stony Creek, Mt. Vernon, Snell, Bigler, Baldwin and Brush with the Rochester District and created Rochester Community Schools. The new district covered fifty-six square miles and enrolled 2,500 students. Consolidation also created enormous pressure for more elementary buildings and a new high school. In early 1954, a $1.8 million bond issue passed to fund one elementary school, additions to two others, and a new high school campus. As a result, North Hill Elementary School and a new Rochester High School were built, allowing the former high school building at University and Wilcox to be converted for junior high grades; it later served as the district's administration center.