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GCSD
Superintendent Update
Doug Fries, Superintendent
Spring 2015
Due to six calamity days used this year, there will be one student
makeup day on June 1st, 2015.
With the close of the 2014-15 school year just a month away, it is time
to congratulate another group of outstanding seniors who formally will
become graduates on May 30, 2015. Two hundred and sixteen graduates are
scheduled to receive their diploma representing the Greenville School's
Class of 2015. The class has had many academic and extra-curricular
accomplishments while at Greenville and we commend each and every
graduate. We wish all graduates much success and happiness in their
future endeavors.
With the close of another school year, our district attention turns to
the preparation for next year. Instructionally we continue to focus on
teaching twenty first century learning skills to all of our students.
We also continue to center our curriculum on national and state
required learning standards and ongoing preparation for online
assessments including the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for
College and Careers (PARCC), American Institute for Research (AIR), and
End of Course Exams.
At the high school next year we will be initiating the new required
College Credit Plus courses through both Edison State and Sinclair
Community College. CCP replaces Ohio's Post-Secondary Enrollment Option
Program (PSEOP) and all alternate dual enrollment programs. Governor
Kasich signed N.B. 487 into law on June 16, 2014 to put the CCP program
in operation for the 2015-16 school year. Our district is working hard
to finalize our plans to put this program into place.
Across the district, other curriculum plans for next year include the
purchase of grades five through eight textbooks and supplemental
material in the discipline of mathematics. We continue to incorporate a
five year cycle to upgrade our curriculum material by content area. At
the career tech building we are looking to increase instructors in our
med tech and engineering manufacturing program. At the Junior High we
are also increasing career tech courses with Information Technology in
7th grade and Business Foundations Information Technology in 8th grade.
At the elementary level we are moving forward with our one to one
initiative with technology at Woodland Primary School. We are planning
to implement one grade level next year at Woodland with each student
having an individual technology device to use for instruction and
supporting twenty first century learning.
Kindergarten screening for the 2015-16 school year will be taking place
on Wednesday, April 29th, Thursday, April 30th and Friday, May 1st. The
screening will take place at EUM Church (new church) 1451 Sater Street.
We look forward to working with another new kindergarten class next
school year. Please feel free to contact Memorial Hall if you have not
registered a kindergarten student and need to schedule to have them
screened.
Summer school will again be offered at Greenville High School and East
Elementary. The high school offers makeup courses through the virtual
academy along with a blended health and physical education class. There
is also Ohio Graduation Test (OGT) tutoring available to students who
still need to pass a part of the test. At East, summer reading
intervention is available for students who are behind in reading. Feel
free to contact the buildings or district office if you need
registration information. Due to construction at the High School,
summer school for that building will be held at the Junior High.
Next year at the high school lunch will be closed to 9th and 10th
graders. We will have a newly remodeled cafeteria and kitchen that will
be able to accommodate more students and the district will be
implementing this change. Likewise, at the end of the day there will be
no early dismissal for juniors and seniors. The Ohio Department of
Education has eliminated funding for students leaving early at the end
of the day unless it is for a credit work related program. Thus, this
procedure will also be implemented.
Our renovation project at the high school is in Phase 8. Presently,
renovation is taking place in classrooms near the media center. During
the month of May the media center and two adjacent rooms will be under
construction. With the beginning of summer, June 2nd through September
1st, much work will take place at the high school. The entire science
wing will be under renovation along with the kitchen, cafeteria and
restrooms outside the cafeteria. New lockers will be installed in
hallways along with painting throughout the hallways. HVAC work will
take place in the childcare, agriculture, virtual academy, and career
tech buildings. The front entrances of the building and at the
cafeteria will get new cement steps and landings with new doors at the
main entrance. Most of the building activities in the summer will be
eliminated. Summer school will be at the junior high. Open gym and band
participation will only be accessed from the outside entrance next to
the present high school baseball field, with inspector's permission.
Any public access to the building will be from the back entrance across
from the high school main office, again with inspector's permission.
All parking should be in the back lot. There will be restrictions all
over the building except in the gym and band room as approved and in
the high school office during regular work hours on a limited basis.
Feel free to contact the high school or central office by phone if you
need questions answered or a meeting coordinated. We must honor the
construction schedule and limit access to the building to complete all
the renovations necessary this summer. The high school project still
continues to track under budget with $50,000 contingency funds
available, as we approach the final phase. I commend the high school
students and staff for working through the renovation project this past
year.
At the new K-8 construction site activity is picking up and will
continue now for eighteen months. Presently foundations are being
poured with appropriate rebar installed. Below grade footers are also
being installed by the masons with walls to begin soon. The electrician
is following the foundations installing sleeves. The plumbers are also
installing sleeves and underground sanitary. Geothermal work has
included installation of piping from outside of the roadways around the
building into the building location and also surveying for their well
field. Geothermal wells will begin being drilled in late June or July.
Coordination meetings are being held between our plumbing/HVAC,
electrician, fire protection and geothermal wells contractors. This
coordination is done by use of Building Information Modeling (BIM)
which is a 3D view of the building design.
Our K-8 building is being built under a construction manager at risk
type project. Our designed building has a guaranteed maximum price from
our CM at Risk, Shook Touchstone, which has been approved and under
contract. The project design is on budget and is tracking with close to
2.5 percent construction contingency available. The only parts of the
building left to be bid are the late packages for technology and loose
furnishings as well as demolition and abatement of our present
buildings. Money has been budgeted and set aside for these packages as
well. The project is still projected to be complete November 15, 2016.
A listing of our established major contractors thus far in the project
includes:
Early site work — Bruns Construction
General Trades — K&T
Concrete foundations — Bruns Construction Concrete
Planks & Erection — Mild South Prestress
Masonry — Hagerman
Doors, Frames, Hardware—Tanner
Roofing — Kerkan
Metal Studs & Drywall - Valley
Food Service — C&T Design
Aluminum Windows/Storefronts — Greenville Glass
Fire Protection —TP Mechanical
Joint Sealants - McBride
Plumbing/HVAC — Slagle Mechanical
Geothermal Wells — Geothermal Systems
Electrical/Cabling — Chapel
Electrical Underground Service — Chapel
Elevator — Thyssen Krupp
Structural Steel Material — American Steel Concrete
Slabs - Precision Steel Erections — Smith Erectors
Tile & Sheet Flooring — T&D
Wood Flooring — Cincinnati Flooring Terrazzo — F&M
Resinous Flooring — T&D
Painting & Coatings - McBride
Theatre & Stage Equipment — Farnham
Again, Shook Touchstone is our Construction Manager At Risk for the
project and is overseeing and managing many parts of the general trades
in the project.
I am sure the community, like the school district, is looking forward
to the progression of the school construction project. We sincerely
thank the community for your support of this project.
In addition to these two construction projects, the district is also
soon going to be participating in two $500,000 legislative grant
programs. One is to enhance an advanced manufacturing/engineering lab
at the high school to improve our career tech space and the other is to
remodel and make improvements to Memorial Hall. These are exciting
times for the improvements and upgrades to our overall school
facilities which will enhance our educational delivery process.
We have scheduled an auction to take place at the high school on the
evening of May 28th. Much dated equipment from the High School, Kitchen
area and around the district that is no longer of use will be
auctioned. More information about this auction will be advertised.
I am pleased to indicate the Board of Education and Greenville
Education Association completed a new master agreement settlement for
another three years, July 1, 2015 —June 30, 2018. This was a very
collaborative process between the two parties with a fair settlement
for all involved. I commend the GEA for this positive collaboration to
the negotiation process.
The close of the 2014-15 school year will mark the retirement of some
of our employees. Staff members retiring at the end of the year include
Rich Cline, Krista Subler, Tracy Tryon and Will Raby at the High
School, Rebecca Muhlenkamp at the Junior High, Mary Petry at South and
Susan Maitlen at East. Ruth Barnum also retired from the High School
midyear. We wish all our retiring employees the very best in their
future endeavors. Please join me in thanking each of these retiring
employees for their dedication to Greenville Schools and our students.
We wish all of our students the best of luck with the end of the year
testing season and final exams. The Superintendent's Office is open all
summer. As always, feel free to contact me by phone at 937-548-3185 or
email at dfries@greenville.k12.oh.us with any questions you have about
our district.
To all of our students, parents, staff and community members, have an
enjoyable end to the school year and a wonderful summer break. We look
forward to working with everyone during the end of the year and again
next fall. Greenville Schools is a great place for students to learn
and teachers to teach.
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