Thursday, Sept. 18

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Board focus on new
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[SEPT. 18, 2003]  The board of education for District 27 met on Wednesday at their new venue -- the new Central School building. Two of the primary topics on the agenda for the meeting were the final touches on the new Central building and the preliminary bids to prepare for building the new junior high school building.

Mike Hanner, a representative of S.M. Wilson construction, said that they are almost finished wrapping up the Central School project. He stated they still have minor issues of missing shelves and countertops, but those have been ordered and should be arriving soon. He also requested a letter from the board regarding a certificate of substantiation: a necessary document that says the building is near completion and is habitable. The company needs this before they can receive their grant money from the state.

Central School Principal Christa Healy was on hand and said there are still several small details that need to be taken care of in almost all areas but that Hanner has a list and is aware of the problems.

Another representative of the company, Court Coles, said that the ground has been cleared and new construction bids for the new junior high building are being accepted at this time. The bid is to include removal of an old foundation discovered on the site, presumably from the senior high building that once occupied the lot.

Coles stated that there has been much response from individual contractors to work on the building. Bidding deadline will be Oct. 2. Coles also introduced the project superintendent for the new building, Sid Wilson.

They will discuss bids for the new building and make the preliminary decisions. The board president, Bruce Carmitchel, promised to do what he can to keep the general public more aware of progress during the building of the junior high.

Carmitchel also asked for explanations of added costs from the building of Central so that they can stay closer to budget on the new building. He hopes this will help the board to make better decisions and be more informed of the process and fees involved when they are voting for revisions to plans or more upgraded features.

 

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The district is in the black overall on their budget, pending money from the state to help with the building funds.

The board unanimously agreed on a waiver of administrative cost limitation, for which District 27 has qualified over the last few years. A criterion for the waiver is a low administrative cost as compared with other districts in the state.

The board has decided to plan an auction to dispose of some extra equipment that was left over when they finished moving the two schools and buying new things for the new Central building. The equipment will primarily consist of students' desks and chairs and a few teacher desks as well.

The superintendent's report handed out at the meeting included some interesting information on the state testing and the requirements for scoring. In the next couple of years, children across the state will have to be tested from third through eighth grade.

The state is also planning to publish the exact standards it will use for this year's ISAT test, which will help the teachers and administration to better prepare students for the test and hopefully raise scores across the district.

Other business discussed included the hiring of several new teachers and staff members, bills and payroll, and an approval of an application for recognition of schools.

The board opened the floor for suspension hearings and for individuals who might wish to address the board, but no one wished to speak.

As the meeting was adjourned, all in attendance had a chance to take a sneak peek at the newly finished gym at the school, which the students have not even had a chance to scuff yet.

[Ruth Halpin]

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