Published: November 30, 2008 05:32 pm      

Raleigh school improvement requests made to board

Local school improvement councils in Raleigh County met with the board of education in October and November to talk over everything from performance and goals to personnel, facilities and security.

LSICs are composed of the school’s principal, three elected teachers, two elected service personnel, three elected parents, two at-large community members and the student body president of schools with grades seven or higher.

The annual meetings, held to give council members a chance to communicate directly with board members, finished Nov. 20.

“These are one of my highlights — we get to go out in the county as board members. We get to be on their turf, which makes it more comfortable,” board president Richard Snuffer said.

Snuffer says he enjoys these meetings because it gives the board an opportunity to hear about schools’ successes and difficulties.

“They come to us and say, ‘Hey, this is what we can really use’ — and we listen,” Snuffer asserted. “We only have so much money, so we let them help us prioritize that money and our spending for improvements, whether it be a new roof or new computers in classroom,” he said.

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The following is a list of LSIC requests that were submitted.

Woodrow Wilson High School: 16 security cameras and a monitor system.

Academy of Careers and Technology: Secure access in rear of building (shop area); paving in parking areas.

Independence High: Storage facility for books, physical education and special education and sports equipment; walkie-talkies for teachers.

Liberty High: Four new classrooms; gymnasium floor; new lockers; electrical upgrades; covered walkways from main building to modular building classrooms; painting in the gym, cafeteria, auditorium; kitchen upgrades; windows; new library books; ramp to modular building.

Shady Spring High: New office complex in front of building; full-time PRO officer on campus.

Beckley-Stratton Middle: HVAC upgrades; one window (that opens) in each classroom; carpet removal in areas; elimination of odors.

Park Middle: Enclosed breezeway between school building and music classrooms to fully secure campus; lockers and student desks.

Shady Spring Middle: Four new classrooms.

Trap Hill Middle: Larger gymnasium; new front door; stools for science lab.

Beckley Elementary: Gymnasium.

Bradley Elementary: Enclosure of back sidewalk area connecting gym to main building; separate gym area to accommodate needs of physical education/healthy schools requirements; plumbing; cameras around building to enhance security; sidewalk replacements and playground/mulch/grounds materials.

Clear Fork Elementary: Bathroom upgrades; sidewalks and parking paving; lighting in back of building; installation of windows near entry door; pre-school program needs their own bathroom facilities to meet special needs of the population; awning placed over front walk; painting in classrooms.

Fairdale Elementary: Security system.

Hollywood Elementary: Fence around playground; guardrail in front of school; larger parking lot; sidewalk needs replaced; improvements on heating and air conditioning units.

Marsh Fork Elementary: New exterior doors with new locks; gymnasium paint; student desks and chairs.

Stanaford Elementary: Replacement of kindergarten rooms; awning above front sidewalks for arrival/dismissal during inclement weather; new bleachers with handrails.

Stratton Elementary: Air conditioning; locks on interior classroom doors; gym painted.

Coal City Elementary: Separate gym and cafeteria; temperature control.

Crab Orchard Elementary: New facility — maintenance problems stemming from age of building; paving; security cameras; fenced-in playground.

Cranberry-Prosperity Elementary: Upgrades to electrical system, including air conditioning; replacement of gymnasium floor; restroom upgrades, including hot and cold water; four additional classrooms; fenced-in playground.

Crescent Elementary: New gym bleachers; new wiring to allow air conditioning units and eliminate opening windows in first-floor classrooms; additional paved parking to alleviate traffic.

Lester Elementary: New windows; phones in classrooms for alerts and emergency assistance.

Mabscott Elementary: Air conditioning; bathroom upgrades; ceiling replacement in cafeteria; window screens to secure first-floor windows until air conditioning is implemented.

Maxwell Hill Elementary: Air conditioning in gymnasium; window repairs; indoor/outdoor cameras.

Sophia-Soak Creek Elementary: Restroom improvements; separate cafeteria; air conditioning in gymnasium.

Daniels Elementary: Pave shoulders in front of school for school buses; road around school to alleviate traffic issues.

Ghent Elementary: Electrical wiring improvements; new windows.

Shady Spring Elementary: Eight additional classrooms; separate cafeteria; security cameras inside and at major exits in the building.

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Several schools asked for technology employees and/or equipment as well as safety access systems to lock inner doors and require all visitors to enter in the main office.