Wichita Board of Education OKs $5 million Robinson project
The Wichita Board of Education met Monday. Here is the meeting at a glance.
Robinson Middle School project
Board members approved a $5 million improvement project at Robinson Middle School, the final project of the 2008 bond issue.
“Well, board, this is a monumental night,” said Kenton Cox of Schaefer Johnson Cox Frey Architecture, the district’s bond manager.
Robinson, Second and Oliver, will get a new 800-seat auditorium and a practice gym that will double as a Federal Emergency Management Agency-approved storm shelter. Sauerwein Construction was the winning bidder.
Cox said construction will start immediately and should be complete by March 2017. The school, built in 1932, is one of Wichita’s oldest and largest middle schools, with about 800 students.
American Education Week
As part of American Education Week next week, superintendent John Allison will host “Five Schools in Five Days,” an event designed to showcase special programs or initiatives happening in classrooms throughout the district. Here is the schedule.
▪ Monday: 11 a.m., Northwest High School, 1220 N. Tyler, career and technical education
▪ Nov. 17: 2 p.m., L’Ouverture Career Explorations/Tech Magnet, 1539 Ohio, technology integration at elementary level
▪ Nov. 18: 2:30 p.m., Levy Special Education Center, 400 N. Woodchuck, learning opportunities for students with special needs
▪ Nov. 19: 1:30 p.m., McLean Science/Technology Magnet, 2277 Marigold Lane, scientific discovery, severe weather safe room
▪ Nov. 20: noon, Jardine STEM/Career Exploration Magnet, 3550 Ross Parkway, STEM lab for middle school students
Education award
The Wichita district and the Wichita State University College of Education received the 2015 Dr. Shirley S. Schwartz Urban Education Impact Award from the Council of Great City Schools.
The award honors an outstanding partnership between a university and an urban school district that has had a positive and significant impact on student learning. As part of the award, the district and WSU plan to jointly select a student – someone who has graduated from Wichita public schools and plans to attend WSU – to receive a two-year scholarship.
They said it
“Because Robinson (Middle School) is in my district. … I hear a lot about ‘When is our storm shelter going to be here? What’s going to happen? We want our students to be safe, too.’ So this is a great night for USD 259, to be drawing to a close on these projects.”
– Board member Joy Eakins, regarding the Robinson bond project
Next meeting
When: 6 p.m. Nov. 23
Where: North High School lecture hall, 1437 Rochester
Reach Suzanne Perez Tobias at 316-268-6567 or stobias@wichitaeagle.com. Follow her on Twitter: @suzannetobias.
This story was originally published November 9, 2015 at 9:50 PM with the headline "Wichita Board of Education OKs $5 million Robinson project."