CLEARFIELD – Because of structural and safety concerns surrounding the school’s roof, the Clearfield Area School District Board of Directors finalized last week’s announcement that Girard-Goshen Elementary will close temporarily on or around Nov. 12. As a result, approximately 70 students and the school’s faculty and staff will resume their academic year at the Clearfield Elementary School.
Prior to the board’s unanimous vote, parents sought reassurance from the district. Parent Brenda Stiner believed their “greatest fear” was of the district using the temporary closure as a “smoke screen” to permanently move the students to Clearfield.
“Most parents aren’t convinced that there really is (a roofing problem),” she said. Her concerns aroused several phone calls during which she received some answers and an understanding of the problem from Rick Bunning, director of buildings and grounds.
Stiner said parents likely grew skeptical of the roofing issue while they hadn’t received any prior notification of one. She said there wasn’t any mention of buckets catching leaks throughout the school. While they knew of “some water spots,” she said those could also be found in other schools within the district.
During her conversation with Bunning, she learned of a recent report received by district officials that outlined the structural problems with the roof at Girard-Goshen. Bunning related to her that the roof “could come down” if there was a heavy snow fall, which is typical of the area.
Last week, Interim Superintendent Dr. J. Thomas Frantz indicated that the roof could hold 30 pounds of snow per square foot. However, he said it should hold 50 pounds per square foot. Neither Frantz nor board President Dave Glass could then specify for which amount the roof was originally designed for, or if it was affected by something else over time.
Stiner encouraged the board to have a local contractor come in and provide a free estimate of the school’s roofing issue. If the roofing issue was diagnosed publicly, she said it would help parents understand and “tone down their anger.”
Glass said he didn’t oppose to providing parents with the most recent roofing report or any of those to follow for Girard-Goshen.
Board member Phil Carr completely understood the concerns of the parents, as the district was about to “disrupt everything.” He said he didn’t believe reassurance was too much to ask for and pushed for a letter from the district’s architect and engineer.
“It’s time for him to tell us and put it in writing. Is or isn’t it safe? It’s about to cause a major disruption,” he said. Frantz said he didn’t see how it’d disrupt the educational process, noting the temporary closure was for the safety of the students.
At that point, one parent who didn’t identify herself to the board interrupted the discussion.
“Are you serious?” she said.
She pointed out that they were about to move 70 students into a larger elementary school. She said the children would have to be bussed an hour to and from school.
Glass explained that the board wasn’t aware of the severity of the roofing situation over the summer. If they had known then, he said it would have been taken care of. However, he said they learned of the current issue following last week’s committee meetings.
“But I haven’t heard any guarantee that the students will go back. I haven’t heard that,” the parent said. She said there were concerns that the district didn’t have the funding in its budget to repair the roof and the building would just sit.
Board member Jennifer Wallace explained to the parents who were in attendance that they didn’t have all the answers to their questions at the present time.
Wallace said the district must first have the roof closely examined at Girard-Goshen. She also said there is a district-wide feasibility study under way, and it must all be taken into consideration before any definite answers could be given.
Another parent who didn’t identify himself to the board asked if the budget allowed for the roof to be repaired. Glass said that they would have to “look hard” at the budget.
Glass said the district will have an extensive examination done on the school’s roof. Right now, he said they’re preparing for the worst case scenario.
“We don’t have any intention to move these students and not return (them to Girard-Goshen),” Wallace said. As a mother of four, she said her first thought was for them to “get the students out and safe.”
Frantz said that the district is currently accepting proposals for the complete check of every structure within the roof. He said it will be a much more in depth process from that in the past.
Glass said that no stone will be left unturned. He thanked the parents who addressed the board and invited them to bring any additional concerns to them.
“We want to keep this as transparent and open with you as possible. Working together is the best way to get through this,” he said.
Mary Michael Sayers, principal of Girard-Goshen Elementary, said she has worked with Principal James Quick of Clearfield Elementary to make the transition as easy as possible, so that there’s a minimum disruption to the educational process. They have planned for the Girard-Goshen students to tour and have lunch at their new school.
“We want them to get a feeling of what it’ll be like,” she said. Quick added that he plans to support the students and faculty through the transition process.
He said that the incoming Girard-Goshen students will not be treated any differently than the current students at the school. He said he wants to ensure that they’re all as successful as possible.
Any person with questions or concerns is asked to contact Interim Superintendent Dr. J. Thomas Frantz by phone at 814-765-5511.
A parent meeting about Girard-Goshen Elementary School’s temporary closure will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the school. Frantz and school board members will be available to address any questions.