Early release due to HVAC, school builing projects

Photo by Chad Koenen
The Henning School Board recently adopted a building grounds plan that would include replacing the HVAC system, as well as demolish an aging garage on Marshall Ave. that will be removed for additional parking.

Henning School students and staff members have their fingers crossed for a nice summer in 2024. That’s because students and staff members will get at least one additional week of summer vacation that was originally scheduled due to an expansive HVAC and building project next summer.

During its regularly scheduled meeting last week, the Henning School Board approved a revised schedule that moves up the final day of school and graduation by one week. The final day of school will be Thursday, May 16 and graduation will be held the following day. The change will allow construction workers an additional week to complete next summers building project.

In order to make up for some of the days that are being canceled at the end of the school year the school board approved several changes to the school calendar last Tuesday. 

Students will now have a full day of school on January 15, February 16 and March 25, as well as a half day of school on November 13.

Staff members will also report to school 10 minutes earlier beginning on January 5 to make up for 21 hours of contractual time in the teacher’s contract. 

As part of the building project, the school district will be replacing its aging HVAC system, replacing elementary windows, replacing a portion of the roof, upgrading the special education bathroom, as well as a variety of other items that have been identified by the school board.

Across the road, the school district will demolition a white garage to make way for a new parking lot near the bus garages on Marshall Ave. The new parking lot will feature 28 spaces with two handicapped accessible spaces. There will be two drive-in/out lanes, which engineers have said will help with traffic flow in and out of the parking lot. New lighting will also be installed in the new parking lot.

The total budgeted cost to complete all of the tasks on hand is just under $8.5 million. In order to help control the costs a bit, the school district is having several of the items be bid as an alternate option to allow it the choice to take it out of the entire scope of the project should bids come in higher than anticipated. 

Bidding for the project is currently underway.

In other news

• Approved the hiring of McKenna Lilja as visual arts teacher. 

• Approved a resolution to ratify the issuance and sale of general obligation facilities maintenance and tax abatement bonds in the original aggregate principal amount of $6,885,000. A total of seven bids were received at an interest rate of 3.9474 percent and the school district received an A1 rating prior to the sale of the bond. 

• Approved the second readings of the student discipline, corporal punishment and credit card policy.

• Approved the authorization of school credit cards from First National Bank in Henning for school district transactions with the credit limits as presented.