Easton delays school start
By Scott Mitchell Johnson
EASTON – Easton students now have an additional week of summer vacation.
At the July 12 Easton School Board meeting, directors decided to delay the start of the 2010-11 school year by nine days due to a construction project at the elementary school taking longer than anticipated.
Students were initially scheduled to resume their studies Tuesday, Aug. 10; the first day of school is now Wednesday, Aug. 18.
“We’re replacing all of the floor tiles in our classrooms at the elementary school,” said Superintendent Frank Keenan, noting that tiles in the hallways were done a few years ago. “We had to abate all of them, so that took some time and then it had to be certified after the abatement.
“Now as we start to replace the tiles, we’re getting these high-humidity days,” he said. “It’s a slow-go. To be sure that we’re going to be done, we’re going to give more time so we don’t have any stress as we come into the start of the year with everybody rushing and teachers not being able to get into their rooms.”
The classroom tile construction project is running the district $59,610. The abatement was $28,360 and the tiling is $31,250.
County Abatement Inc. and Sullivan Floor Covering, both of Caribou, are working on the project. Keenan said he is pleased with the job being done; however, outside circumstances are causing the delay.
“We’re very happy with the project,” he said, “but we’ve run into a number of complications. We’ve had a roof project going on, as well, and that tied up a section in the middle of our school that didn’t allow the abaters to get in for a week. Now it’s taking a little bit longer to get the tiles and when we get the tiles on, it’s going to take longer for them to be prepared and sealed because of the humidity and how that will affect the wax.”
By delaying school a week, Keenan said, the Easton School Department is more in line with the other county schools.
“We were originally going a week earlier than everybody else,” he said, noting that the school year will now be extended a week in June to make up the difference. “We just need more time to complete the project so we’re going to move back into the schedule that is similar to what everyone else has and that will give us the time to get it done.”
