LAUREL COUNTY, Ky. — East Bernstadt Independent Schools will move to a more traditional school calendar next year. Students will attend for five full days a week, instead of getting out at 1 p.m. on Fridays.

“We’re going away from the innovative calendar to a traditional one,” Superintendent Vicki Jones said. “They’ve always dismissed at 1 p.m. on Friday and we will be going five full days, just like the county schools. This will give us more instructional time to meet proficiency goals.”

The new elementary building is on schedule to open for the 2013-2014 school year.

“It’s on schedule if not a little bit ahead,” Jones said. “It’s coming along very well. We have the heat and air going in the building and they’re starting to work on the finishing touches. Today (Friday), they’re pouring the floors in the bathrooms. We’ll hopefully be ready to move in at the close of school, but we won’t move until the kids are gone home for the summer.”

The construction will be going into its last phase, which will make the entire project an estimated cost of $12,222,571.

“This final phase is to renovate the gymnasium,” Jones said. “The $12 million includes the elementary building, the administration wing, the gym, and a new network system. The administration wing will be built where the primary building currently sits. Once we move into the new building with the classrooms, the existing primary building will be torn down and the administration wing will be built. That’s where are new offices and new entrance will be. Running alongside that project, we will also renovate the gym.”

The new gym will include new floors, new bleachers, new windows and new heat and air-conditioning.

Other business acted on during the March 14 meeting included:

• Approved five emergency certified substitute teaching jobs.

• Discussed the dental plan for the faculty.

• The end of school for students will be May 24 because of snow days missed.

• Discussed the new policies on the use of physical restraint and seclusion and the release of records to state child welfare agencies.

“The use of physical restraint and seclusion requires training by the teachers so we’ll be getting that training for our faculty this summer,” Jones said.

• The Kentucky Department has developed a new evaluation system for teachers, which the board adopted.

• Approved the use of Capital Outlay Funds to offset some of the school’s cost.



cmills@sentinel-echo.com