Denair High School’s multipurpose building will get a much-needed needed new roof.
The Denair Unified School District board of trustees Thursday night approved a $1.5 million contract with Omnia Partners and Garland/DBS.
Initially, the plan was to replace the roof over the gymnasium portion of the building, according to Daisy Swearingen, chief business official.
“But it’s actually the entire multipurpose building,” she said. A storm two winters ago caused significant water damage, and though the district made short-term repairs, a longer-term fix is needed.
Board members unanimously approved the project.
Work is expected to start in the next few weeks and wrap up in the spring, Swearingen said. Board members asked if it was important to complete the work ahead of this year’s rainy season, but Swearingen said while rain might cause a brief work stoppage the project overall would not be impacted.
Expenditures will be tracked in accordance with bond program requirements, reported through the district’s annual independent audit and review by the Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee, according to a staff report on the contract.
In other business, the board:
Welcomed student board member Dakota Shaw and alternate Cloey Ellard. Both were sworn in and Shaw took her seat with the rest of the board.
“I took this role because I wanted to make my voice heard,” said Shaw, who also is involved in yearbook and leadership. “I thought it was a good opportunity to get out there.”
Recognized two employees of the month in a new district initiative.
“At our end of year retreat in May, we were talking about ways we could recognize our employees,” said Superintendent Terry Metzger. Administrators came up with the idea of celebrating two employees of the month, one classified and one certificated. The first two to be recognized were Jenna Nascimento, a TK paraeducator at Denair Elementary Charter Academy and Brittany Heinsaar, a counselor at Denair High School.
Reviewed state testing results. While some of the results still showed a lag in learning due to the COVID-19 shutdown, Metzger said students have been showing improvement in the ensuing years.
“We have seen growth,” she said. “We are not happy with these numbers, but we have been working toward that.” Teachers have taken several professional development courses aimed at improving performance, and a new math curriculum the district has adopted is aimed more directly at achieving state standards, Metzger said.
