Connellsville board to create strategic feasibility committee
CONNELLSVILLE — With the Connellsville Area High School renovation project underway, directors appear poised to begin looking at the district’s other facilities and how they will be a part of its future, according to discussion at the Monday work session.
Directors agreed to add the appointment of a strategic feasibility committee to lay out a long range plan for the district and for the committee to meet monthly prior to regular board sessions at the regular Wednesday board meeting.
“Now that the high school project is underway, we feel that it is important to revisit plans for the entire district,” said Dr. Paul Means, board member and chairman of the district buildings and grounds committee.
“With the ninth grade moving to the high school, it will obviously change the demographics of our district.”
The high school project includes provisions to transfer the freshman class from the two current junior high schools to the high school at the start of the 2012-13 school year.
According to the tentative motions, the committee will include the current nine board members and Paul Harshman and Dan Martucci. The two secured positions on the fall election ballot and will likely be installed on the board in December to replace directors Jim Fabian and Denise Martin.
In addition to studying the district facilities, the committee will be tasked to additionally study district finances, transportation and other district operations.
Meetings will be held at 6:30 p.m. — 30 minutes before the start of the monthly regular sessions.
According to the state Department of Education, school districts must develop a complete building facility study of all educational facilities, including the administration office within two years of submitting renovation or new construction plans to the department for reimbursement of costs.
The previous feasibility study was completed in April 2009.
The study must include an appraisal as to the facility’s ability to meet current and planned educational programs, if it meets current construction standards and an estimate of repairs or improvements.
The department will not reimburse a portion of the costs for any building that has been constructed or renovated within the past 20 years.
The buildings eligible for upgrading, include, Clifford N. Pritts, Connellsville Township and Dunbar Township elementary schools, all constructed in 1968; Southside Elementary, built in 1966; Zachariah Elementary, built in 1967 and Dunbar Borough Elementary, constructed in 1975.
In a related matter, the board agreed to hire district architects Crabtree, Rohrbaugh and Associates of Mechanicsburg to complete the study at no cost to the district. A separate fee will be charged to complete an state-mandated energy study of the buildings.