Construction on Schedule
September 06, 2007
Construction on the freshman center and renovation of the auditorium and shop areas at Seaman is right on track and actually ahead of schedule. At the last construction meeting job superintendent, Eric Hubener, (a Seaman graduate) said the project could be completed by January of 2008 2 full months ahead of schedule and on budget.
This summer construction will begin at Northern Hills to renovate the kitchen/cafeteria area to accommodate the consolidation of Northern Hills and Logan 1 year earlier than originally planned. After meeting with our architects we were advised that moving the consolidation ahead 1 year would save up to $200,000 in escalating construction costs. So the Board of Education instructed the administration to accelerate the project. Next year we will bring in 4 portable classrooms at Northern Hills and all district 7th and 8th graders will attend Northern Hills in what will be called Seaman Middle School. The mascot will be the Vikings. Preparation for this move is proceeding fast and furiously!!
With the students vacated from Logan we will begin in August renovating Logan into an elementary school and early childhood center. By the fall of 2009 all construction projects will be completed and we will consolidate East Indianola and Lyman elementary schools into Logan elementary. All pre-school students will attend the Logan Early Childhood Center. Indian Creek students will consolidate with North Fairview students and Lyman will be used to house our own alternative school.
All of this movement will result in a savings of over $600,000 a year in operating costs and will be paid for with a $4.2 million lease/purchase arrangement using our current capital outlay fund. But most importantly these moves will improve our educational settings. By combining our middle schools we will be offering a consistent curriculum to all of our 7th and 8th graders. And eliminating our 1-tract elementary schools will allow for smaller class sizes and better teacher collaboration while at the same time maintaining a small school atmosphere.
We appreciate your patience and cooperation as we move through this phase of the rich and powerful history of the Seaman School District.
