Construction behind, but fifth graders will go to WLMS

Alternative plan set if new addition isn't ready

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Fifth grade students may not have new classrooms for the start of the new school year on Monday, Aug. 23, but they will be attending classes at the West Liberty Middle School, it was learned Monday evening, July 19, at the regular meeting of the West Liberty School Board of Education held at the District Administration building.

In his first meeting with the board – and a short one at that, finishing in just 15 minutes – new Superintendent Shaun Kruger said he had a meeting earlier that day with Tyler Riley of FEH Design and Peak Construction leaders about the 10-classroom, music room addition that was hoped to be completed by Aug. 1.

Kruger says the opening “is going to be close” but Principal Vicki Vernon says she has a “back up plan” that will get all fifth graders into the building even if the new wing is still not quite ready for educational purposes.

The superintendent said construction crews have materials and personnel and are working every day to complete the $2.3 million project on the north-west side of the school that included an $8,192 change order approved by the board, mostly concerning band room construction.

Fifth graders, which have always attended classes at the West Liberty Elementary School, are being shuffled to the Middle School with the new construction, eventually providing space at the elementary school for Early Learning Center students, which will be moved to the building after a new Early Learning Center is built to the north end of the main elementary school sometime in 2014.

“We plan to accommodate,” said Kruger of adding the estimated 100 fifth graders, the school using alternative space to allow the students to move from class to class. The situation would be temporary and may not even be necessary should the construction firm complete the job and give the school district enough time to move supplies, furniture and technology into the classrooms.

He said progress would be updated weekly on the building construction. Kruger said even if the construction crews are running slightly behind schedule, he doesn’t anticipate the new portion opening more than a few weeks late. “It will be ready sometime in August,” he said.

The board also discussed a new on-line learning platform as the district entered an agreement with Edgenuity to offer classes to students wishing to stay on-line with the new school year. He said the district would learn how many students might be interested in the new platform as registration begins this week. Watch for more details in next week’s Index as well as a full report on the school board meeting.

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