By Steve Mayer
In the middle of last summer when the contractor lost a few weeks due to permitting delays, the addition at Sharon School remained on schedule. And although the process of relocating utility poles took several weeks longer than anticipated, the project remained on schedule. But then came winter.
Wet weather began around Thanksgiving. By January and February, due to an unusual amount of snow fall, few winter days remained to allow for good progress. As a result, we must now formally acknowledge that the new addition will not be ready by September 2014, as we had expected. This means that the new elementary level grade configuration permitting us to house students in Pre-K through Grade 4 at Sharon and students in Grades 5 through 8 at Pond will be postponed for one more year.
The good news is that two of the three components that make up Phase II of the renovation project will be complete by the start of school in September. These include expansion of the cafeteria at Pond and inclusion of air-conditioning in the oldest portion of Sharon. It is the third component, consisting of a 27-classroom addition and new gymnasium at Sharon, that has been impacted by Mother Nature and will be delayed.
We are proud of the scope and direction of these projects because they will provide our district with excellent educational facilities for all of our students. Our current enrollment is nearly 3,000 students, and we expect to grow by another 200 to 400 students before leveling out. To this end, we are very pleased that we will have the space to accommodate a growing community in a sensible way. In addition, it is gratifying to know that the caliber of all three of our facilities will be consistent with community expectations.
At this point, we expect the Sharon addition to be complete in late October. Using this timeline, we anticipate moving students from the five modular classrooms and from Windsor School into the main building at Sharon during the winter break. As we will no longer need to lease temporary space, valuable resources will be available to fund programs. Additionally, we are exploring ways to leverage the Windsor property as a revenue generating resource. One of the options we are considering is the possibility of housing a tuition-based Kindergarten program for neighboring districts. As we continue to accommodate programming and enrollment growth in Robbinsville, we do so with a watchful eye on spending and new ways to generate revenue.
In closing, we are grateful that our community voted to entrust us with the responsibility of a project that will serve the needs of current and future generations of students. We are proud to work diligently to ensure that the construction projects continue to move forward productively and stay under budget. We believe that delivering successful renovations will help to solidify a firm foundation on which we continue to strive toward educational excellence.
Steve Mayer is the superintendent of Robbisnville Schools.
