BENTONVILLE -- Construction of an elementary and middle school on Featherston Road is on schedule, according to officials.
Osage Creek Elementary and Creekside Middle schools are set to open in August. The schools will be connected and share some spaces, including the cafeteria and library.
Timeline
Important dates in the development of the Bentonville School District’s 11th elementary school and fifth middle school.
March 2, 2015: The School Board approves spending $1.3 million for 48 acres off Featherston Road in southwest Bentonville.
April 20, 2015: The board selects Hight Jackson Associates as the architect and Nabholz Construction as construction manager of the district’s 11th elementary school.
Nov. 2, 2015: Upon hearing good news regarding growth in the district’s tax collections, the School Board votes to add a middle school to plans for building an elementary school on the newly acquired land on Featherston Road.
Jan. 27: A groundbreaking ceremony is held for the two schools.
Feb. 16: Jeff Wasem is chosen as principal of the middle school and Lisa St. John is chosen principal of the elementary school.
April 18: The School Board approves names for the schools: Osage Creek Elementary School and Creekside Middle School.
Source: Staff report
The School District broke ground in January 2016 on the 180,000 square-foot project. Good weather for most of the fall and winter has helped keep construction on track, said Kent Doughty, senior project manager for Nabholz Construction.
Work began on the elementary side, where crews now are hanging drywall and working on the mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems inside. On the middle school side, they are erecting structural steel, doing brick veneer work and starting exterior windows and doors, Doughty said.
"About 50 percent of the facility is under roof," he said.
Recent cold weather has slowed progress on some fronts, however. That's because certain tasks, such as laying brick veneer, are not supposed to be done when the temperature is below 40 degrees, he said.
Temporary heat has been added to parts of the facility, making working conditions more tolerable.
"It definitely improves morale on the job when the guys aren't fighting 13 degrees and 30-mile-per-hour winds. We have better attendance," Doughty said.
About 120 workers are on site on a typical day, he said.
Osage Creek will add space for 700 students in grades kindergarten through four. It's expected to open with about 570. Creekside will provide space for 750 students in grades five and six; it likely will open with about 450.
Lisa St. John, principal of Apple Glen Elementary School, and Jeff Wasem, principal of Old High Middle School, were chosen in April as principals of Osage Creek and Creeksid, respectively.
Both have spent time preparing for their new schools. They will bid farewell to their current schools in early February and begin working full time preparing to open their schools. They will work out of the district's central office until their new schools are ready.
Both said the transition will be bittersweet. St. John has been either assistant principal or principal at Apple Glen since 1997.
"I've loved the staff and the kids and the parents I've been able to work with at Apple Glen over the last 20 years," she said. "I'm excited but sad."
St. John and Wasem have visited with students who are expected to attend Osage Creek and Creekside next year.
"I have had the opportunity to go to the elementary schools and talk to the fourth-graders who will become our first group of fifth-graders," Wasem said. "And I've gone to the middle schools and talked to those who will be our sixth-graders. I wanted to talk to them about the mascot and the color schemes and different types of clubs they would like to see. That's probably been one of my favorite things thus far, getting to know the kids."
A survey went out last week to Creekside families allowing them to vote on the school's mascot and colors. The mascot has been narrowed to cardinals, eagles and legends, with certain colors attached to all three.
St. John offered students zoned for Osage Creek a choice between an owl, otter and turtle as their mascot. Their vote was an otter, she said.
Though they will be in charge of separate schools, Wasem and St. John are working closely together because their buildings will be connected. As an example, Wasem pointed to a meeting he has with St. John this week to look at furniture needs.
While they will share spaces, that doesn't mean the two schools will be the same.
"As much as we can, we want to work together but still give that feel of that elementary culture and elementary experience and that middle school culture and experience," Wasem said.
St. John and Wasem both said they've visited the construction site twice. Wasem's last time was Dec. 20.
"It will be a beautiful site," Wasem said. "It's going to be a school people will be proud of."
St. John said she's excited about working in a building designed with 21st century technology in mind and spaces that provide educators some flexibility.
The district will begin the process of staffing the schools next month.
The total cost of designing, building and furnishing the schools is expected to be close to $37 million. The district was able to afford the debt payment for both schools with existing revenues and did not need to ask voters for a tax increase.
The schools will serve students living in the district's southwest sector, which has seen tremendous growth in student population over the past decade.
NW News on 01/14/2017