Cassville R-IV moving forward on Vision 150 construction
September 4, 2019
Charlea Estes-Jones
With a few months to work on plan finalization, Cassville R-IV School is moving forward with the Vision 150 project. School superintendent Dr. Richard Asbill said some of the plans have changed slightly but brought some added pleasant unintended consequences.
Cassville School District voters approved the $4.1 million Vision 150 bond during the April 2019 Municipal Election. It passed with 74.71 percent approval from voters.
Asbill said they anticipate work on the Early Childhood Center and the renovation of the school's vintage wing in the middle school will begin in late September or early October, but he anticipates the project will be complete by the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year.
He said, "We knew we didn't want to start in August because of the start of school. That entry to the playground is also used for football games and events. Allowing parents and students to at least get back to school and find a routine uninterrupted by construction was good for us.”
The school will release bid packets for the project in the next couple weeks to look for construction companies to complete the work. At first, they will be looking at demolition and ground work services to kick things off.
The school is already working with Paragon Architecture to finalize plans for the upgrade to the vintage wing and the construction of the Early Childhood Center.
Teachers have had a lot of input into the idea process of how to best utilize the new spaces in both buildings. Asbill said teachers have teamed up with principals, teachers aids and others to make a team effort when it came to planning out what the school needs.
The Early Childhood part will boast four new classrooms and make space in the primary dedicated to kindergarten and first grades.
Asbill credits Paragon for one change to the Early Childhood Center that will add some space to the building. He explained the original plan was to build the addition right along the existing primary school. However, the differences in the foundation and roof line made that a costly option. Paragon suggested moving the building out a bit from the existing primary building and connecting it with a hallway.
Dr. Asbill said, "The unintended consequence gives us a whole new learning space and corridor for the preschool. We were able to capture some things that we probably would not have if we weren’t able to shift that building out a little bit. It gives us a nice entryway, a nice closed ADA-accessible ramp into the building and allows us to make a stage area and big steps so kids can sit and have different activities outside of the classroom."
The hallway will also be a prime place for parents to wait for their children after school at pick up time and look at a long display of student work while they wait.
He added, "Parents can also come in here and see a large student work display right there when they come in. We appreciated that being redefined and seeing how it would give us a lot more usable space and will make the area much more functional for those students and teachers."
The classrooms will also have dedicated rest rooms for students and a conference room.
Part of the project will also be some type of external visual elements to tie the buildings together. Since different buildings were constructed at different times on campus, the district is moving toward a unified theme to make the school more cohesive but also keep nostalgic elements.
Dr. Asbill said, "One of the challenges right now is the exterior of the building. The existing building has a lot of brick. We’re trying to manage the look and be respectful for what is here but also incorporate a design that is modern and would break up a little bit of how much brick it is. The board has been really supportive of understanding that we are capturing some of the traditional red brick look but capture some modern materials, as well."
The school also plans on improving signage on the exterior of the building to help new visitors to the district know where to go.
The remodel of the vintage wing will feature five collaborative learning classrooms, two learning parks, an engagement learning room, a teacher work room and two changing rooms that will serve as a space for students going to gym or teams playing in the JC Duncan gym.
The five collaborative classrooms will be more like traditional classrooms, while the engagement learning room will be more of a multi-purpose lab and the learning parks will be flexible spaces where tables or equipment can be set up and removed based on the needs of the class.
The non-traditional learning space at the middle school will focus on collaborative classes and rotational settings. The classrooms will not be dedicated to a particular subject or teacher. Instead, students of varying grade levels will use the space for classes that will feature multiple grade levels and focus on incorporating math, science and literacy into other classes.
Initially, the school had planned to connect the JC Duncan Gym to the middle school, as well. However, Asbill said that is being reevaluated due to parents walking along that sidewalk from the gravel parking lot to the intermediate and middle schools regularly. He said there will be some kind of safety measure put in place, perhaps a covered walkway with a lockable gate, similar to what already exists by the middle school courtyard. He said, “We want something that will satisfy our needs for safety while also serving our parents and students.”
Part of the bond's construction is already complete. Prior to school starting, cabinets were replaced in elementary classrooms. Dr. Asbill said that project went well. "The cabinets for first and second grade and art room were all completed. We were so excited about our teachers’ rooms and we also added new marker board and bulletin boards for each of those rooms. The teachers had asked for magnetic marker boards, so that was a great improvement. It’s the same classroom, but they have some more space and a new look and opportunities to put things away. It’s really opened up their rooms."
The district also upgraded the security cameras and is almost finished with the intercom and communication systems upgrades.
As Vision 150 moves into a bigger construction phase, one big proposed project is still up in the air. One item that was listed as a possible project for the bond was relocation of the transportation barn to encompass the barn and maintenance. The goal is to open up more area for parking with that possible switch.
Asbill said, "The biggest question mark is the relocation of the transportation bus barn system. We're not doing anything on that until we can commit to all of the student and teacher impact areas first. We want those completed before considering the transportation change."
Overall, the project is moving forward and changes should be visible in the coming weeks. Asbill said, "If things go well, we could have lots of activity in late September or early October."
Charlea Estes-Jones
With a few months to work on plan finalization, Cassville R-IV School is moving forward with the Vision 150 project. School superintendent Dr. Richard Asbill said some of the plans have changed slightly but brought some added pleasant unintended consequences.
Cassville School District voters approved the $4.1 million Vision 150 bond during the April 2019 Municipal Election. It passed with 74.71 percent approval from voters.
Asbill said they anticipate work on the Early Childhood Center and the renovation of the school's vintage wing in the middle school will begin in late September or early October, but he anticipates the project will be complete by the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year.
He said, "We knew we didn't want to start in August because of the start of school. That entry to the playground is also used for football games and events. Allowing parents and students to at least get back to school and find a routine uninterrupted by construction was good for us.”
The school will release bid packets for the project in the next couple weeks to look for construction companies to complete the work. At first, they will be looking at demolition and ground work services to kick things off.
The school is already working with Paragon Architecture to finalize plans for the upgrade to the vintage wing and the construction of the Early Childhood Center.
Teachers have had a lot of input into the idea process of how to best utilize the new spaces in both buildings. Asbill said teachers have teamed up with principals, teachers aids and others to make a team effort when it came to planning out what the school needs.
The Early Childhood part will boast four new classrooms and make space in the primary dedicated to kindergarten and first grades.
Asbill credits Paragon for one change to the Early Childhood Center that will add some space to the building. He explained the original plan was to build the addition right along the existing primary school. However, the differences in the foundation and roof line made that a costly option. Paragon suggested moving the building out a bit from the existing primary building and connecting it with a hallway.
Dr. Asbill said, "The unintended consequence gives us a whole new learning space and corridor for the preschool. We were able to capture some things that we probably would not have if we weren’t able to shift that building out a little bit. It gives us a nice entryway, a nice closed ADA-accessible ramp into the building and allows us to make a stage area and big steps so kids can sit and have different activities outside of the classroom."
The hallway will also be a prime place for parents to wait for their children after school at pick up time and look at a long display of student work while they wait.
He added, "Parents can also come in here and see a large student work display right there when they come in. We appreciated that being redefined and seeing how it would give us a lot more usable space and will make the area much more functional for those students and teachers."
The classrooms will also have dedicated rest rooms for students and a conference room.
Part of the project will also be some type of external visual elements to tie the buildings together. Since different buildings were constructed at different times on campus, the district is moving toward a unified theme to make the school more cohesive but also keep nostalgic elements.
Dr. Asbill said, "One of the challenges right now is the exterior of the building. The existing building has a lot of brick. We’re trying to manage the look and be respectful for what is here but also incorporate a design that is modern and would break up a little bit of how much brick it is. The board has been really supportive of understanding that we are capturing some of the traditional red brick look but capture some modern materials, as well."
The school also plans on improving signage on the exterior of the building to help new visitors to the district know where to go.
The remodel of the vintage wing will feature five collaborative learning classrooms, two learning parks, an engagement learning room, a teacher work room and two changing rooms that will serve as a space for students going to gym or teams playing in the JC Duncan gym.
The five collaborative classrooms will be more like traditional classrooms, while the engagement learning room will be more of a multi-purpose lab and the learning parks will be flexible spaces where tables or equipment can be set up and removed based on the needs of the class.
The non-traditional learning space at the middle school will focus on collaborative classes and rotational settings. The classrooms will not be dedicated to a particular subject or teacher. Instead, students of varying grade levels will use the space for classes that will feature multiple grade levels and focus on incorporating math, science and literacy into other classes.
Initially, the school had planned to connect the JC Duncan Gym to the middle school, as well. However, Asbill said that is being reevaluated due to parents walking along that sidewalk from the gravel parking lot to the intermediate and middle schools regularly. He said there will be some kind of safety measure put in place, perhaps a covered walkway with a lockable gate, similar to what already exists by the middle school courtyard. He said, “We want something that will satisfy our needs for safety while also serving our parents and students.”
Part of the bond's construction is already complete. Prior to school starting, cabinets were replaced in elementary classrooms. Dr. Asbill said that project went well. "The cabinets for first and second grade and art room were all completed. We were so excited about our teachers’ rooms and we also added new marker board and bulletin boards for each of those rooms. The teachers had asked for magnetic marker boards, so that was a great improvement. It’s the same classroom, but they have some more space and a new look and opportunities to put things away. It’s really opened up their rooms."
The district also upgraded the security cameras and is almost finished with the intercom and communication systems upgrades.
As Vision 150 moves into a bigger construction phase, one big proposed project is still up in the air. One item that was listed as a possible project for the bond was relocation of the transportation barn to encompass the barn and maintenance. The goal is to open up more area for parking with that possible switch.
Asbill said, "The biggest question mark is the relocation of the transportation bus barn system. We're not doing anything on that until we can commit to all of the student and teacher impact areas first. We want those completed before considering the transportation change."
Overall, the project is moving forward and changes should be visible in the coming weeks. Asbill said, "If things go well, we could have lots of activity in late September or early October."