Construction at Columbia High School was a major point of discussion for the Columbia School Board last week, though board members also approved the sale of $14.5 million in debt certificates on top of welcoming a new assistant superintendent to the district.

Following the consent agenda, Columbia School Board President Greg Meyer welcomed new Assistant Superintendent Dr. Amanda Ganey to the district at the top of the meeting.

“It has been an amazing start,” Ganey said. “I have met a lot of really great people and been welcomed beyond measure.”

Columbia Superintendent of Schools Chris Grode also welcomed Ganey in his monthly report, commending her for her efforts just a few weeks into her tenure.

“Dr. Ganey has hit the ground running,” Grode said. “She’s getting up to speed, and it’s just been good to have you here.”

Also in his report, Grode spoke extensively about the ongoing high school construction, noting that a page has been added to the district website (columbia4.org) – a link is available in the menu tab at the bottom of the site – which will be used to provide updates on the project.

He also touched on a number of details surrounding the project, including the initial justification of why it was deemed necessary. As district schools were being assessed, CHS seemed to be the main building with substantial issues including a lack of an auditorium, outdated labs and electrical issues as well as a simple need for more space.

From there, those initial thoughts were refined as it was decided district bonds would be used to address the major high school building needs while other concerns such as high school parking and space at Eagleview Elementary would be handled through County Facility Sales Tax revenue.

Grode also shared a conceptual rendering of the front of the renovated high school – the image is also available on the district website.

He went on to provide a walkthrough of design blueprints, noting the auditorium, classroom and office additions to the building set to be completed in the ongoing phase one construction, the new competition gym and locker rooms in phase two as well as the broader renovations and changes in phase three which include an expanded cafeteria, elevators and stairs for the west wing of the building and general classroom adjustments.

A major point of emphasis on Grode’s presentation on the project concerned parking, with drop-offs and pick-ups requiring adjustment as the usual front of the building will be inaccessible during construction.

Parents dropping off or picking up students are asked to access the campus from Veterans Parkway, with students entering on the west side of the building.

Students parking in the southern lot near Columbia Middle School will also enter on the building’s west side while students in the east lot near the athletic field and the north lot in Bolm-Schuhkraft Memorial City Park will enter on the east side.

A diagram of the planned entrance setup is available on the district website’s high school construction page.

“Traffic at the high school has never been wonderful,” Grode said. “Keeping the drop-off and pick-ups the same, it seems to work, it should still work. Making sure the kids park and go in the right place… The big thing is going to be people trying to cut the middle school line by not following the stuff that we’re doing. If everybody does whatever they wanna do, we’re gonna have some issues. So, we are just asking that people follow these rules.”

A town hall concerning the construction is also planned.

Board member Adam Hemken also chimed in on the CHS project at the end of the meeting, noting how well the new lots fared during the heavy rain earlier in the week.

“Even with the torrential rains, the drainage worked fine,” Hemken said. “That was a relief to see that even though we added more solid surface up in that parking lot at the park… That was a sufficient test, I would say.”

The largest action item for the board concerned the issue and sale of roughly $14.5 million in debt certificates meant to fund district renovations, including the high school project.

A representative of Stifel was present for this portion of the meeting, offering an overview of the process. She noted how the district sold about $10 million in debt certificates last year and is expected to sell another substantial sum next year, adding that the district will ultimately be selling bonds for long-term funding purposes.

Meyer expressed his appreciation for Stifel as the investment firm has helped the district navigate this matter.

“They continue to be a good counselor for us and advise us on what we can and can’t do,” Meyer said. “Our primary goal is to keep the tax rate flat and not burden the taxpayers any more.”

Other action items approved by the board included a contract for vision services to be provided online, bids for both fuel and chemicals for food service, and several health life safety amendments meant to provide funding for aspects of the high school project such as fire sprinklers, restroom accessibility and a new elevator.

The board also approved the hiring of ancillary staff as needed for the coming school year, the second reading of board policies and the annual safety hazard/school safety bussing area allowing students who live close to a school to use the bus in order to avoid crossing major roads.

A substantial portion of the meeting involved presentations from CHS Spanish teacher Elisha Arnold and CHS German teacher Taylor Nickerson as they recounted recent student trips abroad they had both participated in.

Arnold discussed how the trip to Madrid had come together thanks to folks from Saint Louis University, speaking to the various sites and educational opportunities her students got to experience as they honed their Spanish skills.

“This is the fourth trip I’ve ever taken with Columbia students, but this was by far the most culturally rich,” Arnold said. “I’ve already had a meeting at the SLU 1818 department. They’re wanting to know if I would be willing to go again next summer and take a smaller group of Columbia students and help kind of branch this out to other schools in the metro east.”

The German trip – which the Republic-Times recently published a story about – was similarly positive according to Nickerson, who also noted how not a single issue was reported as his students were well-behaved with their host families and attended school each day.