Pueblo D60 construction: Here are some important dates for five new school buildings
A busy summer awaits Pueblo School District 60, with five new school buildings nearing completion and expecting to house students this fall.
During a March 14 board of education meeting, the district unveiled its "transition plan" to get the new Centennial High School, East High School, Franklin School of Innovation and Sunset Park Elementary School buildings ready for the fall. Plans for the Nettie S. Freed K-8 Expeditionary School also were addressed. Construction of the five schools is paid for by a $218 million bond passed by voters in 2019.
"It seems like yesterday when many of us were standing on a street intersection, holding up signs, hoping that the community would support our bond," said Suzanne Morey, assistant superintendent of Pueblo D60.
The district expects to have construction of the new high schools completed by May 1. A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new East High School will be held on May 15 at noon. Centennial High School will hold its ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 22 at noon.
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Franklin School of Innovation and Sunset Park Elementary buildings will be complete on May 16. Ribbon-cutting ceremonies for the two elementary schools will be held later in the summer — on Aug. 10 at 3 p.m. for the Franklin School of Innovation and on Aug. 11 at 3 p.m. for Sunset Park Elementary.
Freed K-8 Expeditionary School will be the final school building to have its construction completed. The expeditionary learning-focused school will be completed on June 30 and hold its ribbon-cutting ceremony on Aug. 24 at 3 p.m. Ribbon-cutting ceremonies for all five schools will be followed by a public open house.
A proposed calendar for Nettie S. Freed K-8 Expeditionary school places the first day of school on Aug. 28, a week later than the first day at other schools in the district. The late start intends to leave enough time for professional development related to the new expeditionary curriculum, technology installation and unpacking of materials.
"We really wrestled with the decision to open a little bit later than the rest of our schools, because we know it could potentially pose a hardship for our families," Morey said. "We were very thoughtful about this decision. However, after extensive conversations, we erred on the side of ensuring our staff and our school would be able to provide a well-organized, safe and welcoming environment for our students starting from the very first day."
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Under the Pueblo D60 transition plan, school staff from Centennial, East and Franklin School of Innovation and Sunset Park Elementary will be responsible for packing school materials and removing personal items from old school buildings. District facilities staff will transport materials, furniture and other equipment to the new school buildings.
Teacher packing days will be held from Tuesday, May 30 to Thursday, June 1, for the aforementioned high and elementary schools. Friday, June 2, will be a teacher work day and the final day to complete all packing. A two-week process of moving packed items to the new schools will begin on Saturday, June 3. School staff will be responsible for unpacking their own items.
Pueblo Chieftain reporter James Bartolo can be reached by email at JBartolo@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Here are some important dates for Pueblo D60 schools being constructed
