View from the Inside

If you have been watching the construction project from the outside it may appear that not a lot has happened in the last couple of months. Looks can certainly be deceiving if this is your only viewpoint. The fact is a lot has happened in the intervening months since the cold weather set in, and each time I stop out to review the project it is exciting to see the progress. From a large empty shell, we can now really start to visualize how the space is going to look! Which is great, considering we are planning to be finished in time for the 2020-2021 school year to begin. 

Currently a lot of the work is focused on the new elementary office area. In the photo included here, I am standing behind the work area that will be assigned to the administrative assistants. Directly to my right and out of view is the principals office. Behind me are teacher work areas and conference rooms. The opening you see to the right will be the only public access to the facility during the day and is a secured entrance; one of the most important and highly sought after features of this space. It will require patrons to pass through the office in order to gain access to the school during the school day. The large openings in front of the desk area are windows that overlook the commons. I am not including any pictures of the commons here because that space still has quite a bit of work to be done. The window to the right is the new medical area, which is greatly expanded from the current space and will be a comfortable place to meet the health needs of our students.

While this project shows steady progress, there is no doubt much work remaining. In my opinion, the work that is scheduled for this summer will eclipse what we have done so far. This includes removing the current west wall in the [current] commons to connect to the new space, the entrance to the academic wing along the south wall, and the final expansion of the media center. Also included in the work over the summer will be removing and rebuilding the north staircase through the valley as well as the addition of a ADA compliant lift. If it sounds like a lot of work in a relatively short period of time, it is!

Those big pieces in and of themselves are enough to keep our construction crew[s] very busy over the summer. But, there are a lot of other components that are incredibly important, but not necessarily as 'eye popping' as the the others already discussed. Remember, this is 'Phase III' of the elementary renovation project. Once concluded, we will have pretty much completely renovated the elementary attendance center. One of the other biggest (and unseen) components scheduled for this summer is finishing the new ventilation systems for both the early childhood wing and the 4th and 5th grade wing. We are hoping to have those wrapped up by the end of June so our maintenance crew has plenty of time to get everything cleaned up and ready to go for the students.

All during this project I have reminded our faculty and staff that progress is sometimes noisy, messy, and inconvenient. With that, there are a couple of things that are scheduled to begin here very shortly that you should be aware of. As a start, immediately following the conclusion of our winter sports seasons, we plan to begin demolition of all four locker rooms. This includes those directly adjacent to the competition gym and those in the basement. Then, once spring break arrives the construction crew will remove the rubble from that work. At the same time, the current elementary office will be abandoned and temporarily relocated. Demolition in that office will commence over spring break as well, with that space ultimately being converted to instructional space. Part of this renovation project has also had the goal of ensuring our elementary school is equipped to handle four sections at each grade level. Currently configured as a three section elementary, this expansion will help us manage projected enrollment growth. This conversion will help us to meet that goal.

From My Couch

For the most part, people seem to understand the challenge of making weather related calls. Deciding whether or not we should cancel school, delay the start of classes, or dismiss early is not easy. I know, it always looks easy three hours after the fact when we are sitting on the couch in front of a warm fire. Yet, in spite of the detailed analysis that goes into making these decisions, we [school superintendents] are almost certain to second guess whether or not we made the right call. When we decide to disrupt the school day or schedule, we pray the radar tract holds up and the storm doesn't stall out or miss us entirely (sometimes that happens). When we decide to stick it out, we pray the storm doesn't change track and hit us at the most inopportune time (that happens too). The truth is, school superintendents are about as well trained as you are when it comes to the weather. I received most of my training at the University of Northern Iowa, and there wasn't a course on meteorology or school cancellations in my superintendent prep program. Granted that was a few years back, but I checked again recently; there still isn't.  

The run up to making any decision like this starts well in advance of the actual weather event; typically days beforehand. We'll get a weather bulletin from the National Weather Service out of Des Moines and take part in webinars or conference calls with the meteorologists. The forecast from our local media outlets are also part of the data gathering process. I have colleagues who will swear by a particular website, meteorologist, or some other prediction tool. Heck, I even know of one school that has a service they subscribe to that gives them the very best forecast money can buy. Yet in my experience, one is about as good as the other. 

However, one of the greatest resources we have at our disposal that the general public doesn't is each other. During deliberations that include such things as checking the latest weather forecast and physically driving roads in the district, there is probably no one that we rely on more than our brothers and sisters in arms: superintendents in the vicinity who too are faced with making crucial decisions with incomplete, unpredictable, and constantly changing data. I sometimes chuckle when an angry parent calls to tell me that we are 'the only one in school today', or 'the only one that cancelled'. I know that isn't true because we have talked. Probably multiple times, usually beginning around 4:30 a.m. Truth be told, we know what other districts are going to do before it is announced publicly. Very rarely will you see a lone ranger that has made a decision that is contrary to what every other school district in the area has done. There is strength in numbers.

Timing is pretty important as well when making these calls. From a practical standpoint, there are some immovable thresholds that can't really be tinkered with. In the morning for example, we have our early morning practices and rehearsals to content with. Those usually start around 6:00 a.m., so it is important to make that decision by 5:15 a.m. I know there are a lot of parents who appreciate knowing that so they don't have to make the trek into town unnecessarily. This is why you will oftentimes see a preemptive cancellation on morning activities the evening before. Not only does that buy a little time in the morning, but it also let's parents know they may not need to get up quite so early the next day! So, if morning activities are preemptively cancelled, that gives extra time in the morning to check roads and see how the radar is tracking. However, the latest we could ever change the schedule would be 6:30; and by then it's really too late as well. With our first bus leaving the barn at 6:45, waiting until then is just cutting it too close!

Plus there are other considerations. As a parent, how would you feel about finding out at 6:30 in the morning that school was delayed or cancelled? All of a sudden you are in scramble mode, particularly if you are already out the door and on your way to work! The same is true when an unscheduled early release happens. I recognize how disruptive this is for families, so we try to give as much lead time as possible. Plus, we try really hard to make sure we get everyone fed before sending the students home. For some of our students, they rely on that lunch because it might be all they get that day. 

Here's the thing though. At the end of the day this is a judgment call based on the best data available at the time the decision was made. That data layered among numerous other variables: student safety, the disruption to the family, when the buses have to move, making sure our students are well fed, and that; regardless of what decision we make, they are someplace warm and safe. Unfortunately I don't have the benefit of making that decision 3 hours after it has started snowing. Sometimes, well I'm going to miss. And we have to be okay with that.