Architects gave the public an overhead glimpse of what Pine Bluff High School will look like in the coming years during Monday's Pine Bluff School District board meeting.
Clayton Baden of Lewis Architects Engineers suggested two construction options for board members to consider, and District Superintendent Jennifer Barbaree said the plan would help board members build a new building on West 11th Street. It was confirmed that this signifies an agreement to build a new high school on the current PBHS campus. Dollarway High School students will be integrated with the PBHS student body starting in the 2023-24 school year.
“We decided we wanted to rebuild Pine Bluff High School,” Barbary said. “We can't build it without the support of the community millage. Have you decided on a site location? I think the answer is yes. We're going to build it where the current site is.”
District residents can approve additional funding through a millage increase, and board members hope to have details by next month. ADE approved $12,817,259 for the then-estimated $24 million high school project covering 116,489 square feet in July 2021, but construction costs have skyrocketed since then.
“We hope that in May the architect will give us an idea of what the cost will be,” Barbary said. “By the way, next week is May, so we want to get the costs right within the next two weeks so that the board can express what they want from their patrons down to the millage. The next board meeting will be sooner, if not sooner.”
Mr. Barbary supports Mr. Varden's original site plan. The plan is to build an east-facing campus on Olive Street and remove the two buildings on the south end. Only one entrance will be open during the day for safety reasons, surrounding an outdoor courtyard where students can gather during breaks.
The second option would be to locate the entrance to the school on the south side of campus, with parking in the southeast corner, and also include a courtyard.
Both plans call for the possibility of installing baseball and softball fields on campus, as well as possible renovations to the arena and Jordan Stadium. Baden said these are just ideas that demonstrate “long-term thinking” and that the cost-sharing partnership between the Arkansas Department of Education and PBSD to rebuild new schools does not include athletic facilities, but classroom buildings and other It warned that this does not include educational space. As a 13,000 square foot gymnasium.
Under a state-district partnership, the Trice, Arts, Patterson, McGeorge, and ROTC buildings must be demolished to make way for the new campus; It will continue to be used until it is secured. Barbary said it was completed.
“At this point, it looks like we have most of the things in place.” [the students] The Patterson location is where most of the students are now, and they will continue to use the cafeteria and hold classes in the art building there. And since McGeorge has a library, I'm going to save it until I get a new build. Therefore, Site Plan I is easy to migrate. ”
The current campus is built on a floodplain and will need to be raised to improve water runoff, Bayden said.
salary and cuts
PBSD has established a certified salary schedule for 2023-24 in accordance with Arkansas' new LEARNS law.
All certified employees employed by the district during this school year with a base salary of $48,000 or less will earn the state minimum wage of $50,000. Those employed within the district with a base salary of $48,000.01 or more will receive a $2,000 increase in salary. Current certified employees who earned a master's, professional, or doctoral degree in August of this year will receive placement in the appropriate lane or a $2,000 increase, whichever is greater, on the 2022-23 schedule, and , 24 newly qualified employees in the district in 2023 will be placed in the appropriate lane on the 2022-23 pay scale based on their experience at the beginning of 2022-23, but as required by law. You will receive the minimum amount requested.
For positions with extended contract days, the value of these days will be calculated using the current placement on the 2022-23 schedule plus the appropriate LEARNS increment.
Barbary said classified employees will receive cost-of-living raises. She added that these employees will continue to receive step increases as before.
Burberry announced Monday that non-renewal letters have been provided to teachers who do not have a license and are not making progress towards becoming licensed. Some teachers who received stipends in inactive roles have received partial non-renewal notices, meaning they will no longer receive their stipends but can continue to teach.
The move was made to “clean up” the district's finances, which Barbaree said is a top priority for the district as it seeks to break away from state control. The PBSD board is operating with limited authority as the state Department of Education continues to approve all final decisions.
All fixed-amount scholarships remain the same as long as the scholarship continues.
Personnel change
The board of directors announced the resignation of Levi Clark from the maintenance department effective March 10, the retirement effective June 9 of Robert F. Morehead Middle School nurse Kathy Wells, and the resignation of bus driver Carl Cole. His resignation was accepted on Friday.
The board approved a contract addendum for career and technical education teacher Calvin Thomas, effective April 19.
