Dear Cle Elum-Roslyn Community,
As we gear up for the upcoming school year, it is with immense pride that we update you on the significant strides we've made over the year and a half towards enhancing our early learning options and modernizing our elementary school facilities. These developments are a testament to our community’s commitment to early learning and pre kindergarten support, supported by the generous backing of the 2022 replacement Capital Projects Levy, insurance proceeds from our fire in 2022 of the old Suncadia laundry facility (District owned), and federal COVID relief funds we have been saving for the past year.
Our Commitment to Early Learning
Since the passage of the 2022 replacement Capital Projects Levy, we pledged to prioritize the needs of our youngest learners, focusing on preschool, developmental preschool, and transitional kindergarten. We know that an investment in early learning will contribute to closing our achievement gaps in our district. This commitment underlines our recognition of the foundational importance of early education for our children's lifelong success. We also know the challenges with scarce resources in day care options in Upper Kittitas County.
Overcoming Challenges
Our original plan to transform the old Suncadia Laundry Facility into a standalone Early Learning Center was derailed when the building was lost to a fire in Jan 2022. However, our community did not lose heart. With an insurance settlement of $2,098,214.52 in November 2022 alongside saved Capital Projects Levy funds and ESSER (COVID) money, we redirected our efforts toward establishing a new Early Learning Center (ELC).
A New Vision for the ELC
After reevaluating our initial site choice due to concerns about losing play fields and unsuitable construction conditions at the Elementary campus, we identified a new location for the ELC behind our central office, adjacent to the high school parking lot. Confronted with a $14 million estimate that surpassed our budget, exceeded our timeline to address growing capacity issues, we were compelled to seek a more feasible and immediate solution.
Engaging the Community and Refining Our Strategy
The formation of a community capital projects committee in the 2022-2023 school year played a crucial role in guiding our decisions and vision of the future and Early Learning decisions. Their comprehensive review of long-term facility use, capacity, and necessary improvements helped us identify a viable path forward. They identified necessary improvements in our secondary programing, that may negate the ability to place the ELC near the high school, or could restrict other developments down the road for the high school. This Summer 2024, we plan to install four two-pack portables and remodel our elementary school, specifically tailoring it to better support our early learners and address crowding in the elementary school.
Summer 2024 Updates
Installation of Eight Classrooms: The introduction of four two-pack portables at the elementary will cater to our 4th and 5th graders, promoting a sense of independence and facilitating a smoother transition to middle school.
Remodeling for Early Learning: We will remodel eight primary classrooms to meet the specific needs of our Pre-K, TK and Kindergarten programs, effectively establishing distinct early learning and elementary wings within the school. This will also ensure we can have private playgrounds for our littles. The remodeling of the classrooms will ensure that all of our early learners will have modernized classrooms that are developmentally appropriate and able to provide engaging experiences at their development levels. The upgrades include new playground equipment and the implementation of separated recess areas to comply with state laws, enhancing safety and enjoyment for our students. Updates include all new elementary playgrounds for all Pre-K through 5th grade students, and separate TK playgrounds for independent play throughout the day.
Cost-Effective and Future-Ready: This strategic approach, costing approximately $6 million, not only addresses our current capacity challenges but also conserves resources for future capital projects, and capitalizes on our well maintained elementary school. The portable classrooms offer versatility for future reconfiguration based on evolving needs if we decide to remodel other schools, or build new, as our expected growth continues, and as we grasp changing careers of the future and new programming needs.
Looking Forward to Fall 2024
We are excited to announce that these updates will be completed in time for the Fall start, significantly enhancing our early learning environments and better accommodating the needs of our community. This initiative exemplifies our dedication to fiscal responsibility and our commitment to providing our students with the high-quality educational spaces they deserve. This also reinforces the Boards commitment in reducing the burden to taxpayers to complete these necessary improvements. To build a stand alone facility, would have required community support through increased taxes.
Expressing Our Gratitude
We extend our deepest gratitude to the Cle Elum-Roslyn community for your steadfast support and patience throughout this journey. It is your dedication to our schools and the future of our children that makes these accomplishments possible. We are eager to continue our collaborative efforts to further enrich the educational experiences of our students and address the needs of our community. Please continue to watch our updates as we have recently identified architectural firms that will help the district create a long range facility master plan for our district and your input, voice, and ideas will be needed in that process.
As always, thank you for supporting our Educational Programs and Operations levy this February. This funding will continue to improve our programming and better meet our students' needs. If I can answer any of your questions, or you want a seat at the table for the exciting future ahead for our community in better meeting student needs and the careers of the future, let me know, belcherj@cerad.org.
All my best and be well,
John H. Belcher
Superintendent
Cle Elum-Roslyn School District