Odin School Superintendent Kimberly Briggs says the third story of the high school buildings will have bathrooms for the first time and all but the bathrooms in the kindergarten area will be renovated as part of the latest building improvements approved by the school board Monday night.
Briggs reports the latest phase of work to be approved is mostly in the plumbing area. Right now the high school portion of the building only has bathrooms on the first floor.
The board earlier approved $2,025,000 in other building improvements. She expects one more amendment to the contract with its performance contractor GRP Wegman next month. The $100,000 addition would be for mostly appearance items such as new doors, handles, and locks.
The first projects approved at the November meeting will include installation of HVAC systems throughout the high school building and gym to replace the existing boiler system, as well as refurbishing of most of the district’s roofs and tuck pointing the exterior brickwork of the high school building. The work is being paid for with bonds funded by the one-cent sales tax being collected for Marion County Schools as well as a half-million dollars in working cash bonds. Briggs has been told the work should all be able to be completed this summer.
The board’s Return to School plan was amended to follow the temporary restraining order issued by a judge against multiple school districts, including Odin, after finding the Governor overstepped his bounds in issuing the mask mandate for schools. Under the TRO, wearing masks is optional, there will be no contact tracing, and no testing of unvaccinated staff.
In other action, the board approved the Senior Trip to Silver Dollar City. Social worker Sarah Loepker’s maternity leave was approved. Tara Robertson resigned as an aid.
