Lamar RE-2 Board Continues Discussions for MHDC/Lincoln School Consolidation

Lamar RE-2 Administration Building

Action to approve the consolidation of the Melvin Hendrickson Developmental Center Pre School students to Lincoln Elementary School in Lamar was tabled pending further discussion with board members of Melvin Hendrickson, according to Lamar RE-2 School District Superintendent, David Tecklenburg.  The superintendent said 126 students are using three buildings and some savings on utilities and other costs could be saved with a consolidation to Lincoln Elementary. 

That school was opened to Project HOPE Teen Center students this past fall after having been closed for a year.  Some other benefits to the move includes a playground that is secured on all sides by high fencing and the school itself, and a less used road for dropping off and picking up the pre school children.  There had been some concerns about the amount of traffic along Savage Avenue during the morning and noontime hours when residents are driving to work, high school students are arriving for classes and pre-schoolers are dropped off for classes.  

Superintendent Tecklenburg provided board members with an update on the BEST grant.  The district was awarded $1.7 million for boiler replacements and heating improvements to Lamar Middle School and Parkview and Washington Elementary Schools.  Tecklenburg said that he’s meeting with engineers next week for an update on costs and hopes to secure additional funding from BEST to cover the additional costs.  Some of the upgrades include switching from steam to hot water heaters and the chiller cooling system at Lamar Middle School needs to be replaced.  The superintendent said all those systems are aging and in pretty rough shape. 

In other action, the board approved field trip requests for the Notables to attend Honor Choir in Gunnison this March, welding students to attend competition in Oklahoma later this month, high school Gifted and Talented students to attend Legislative Day in Denver on February 20 and 21 and the high school Knowledge Bowl team to travel to Pueblo for the Regional Meet on February 22.  The board approved the resignations of Sonia O’Bryan as the Parkview Reading/Math Interventionist effective May 24 and Charity Stocking in the Vocational/Ag program at the high school effective February 14.  Halley Keller was approved as Classified Substitute Media Clerk-Secretary-Teacher Aide.

By Russ Baldwin