Minot Public School Board members gave approval Thursday for Supt. Mark Vollmer to hire an architect to draw up plans for the next phase of the district's master plan.
Phase 2 would tentatively include construction of a new elementary school on land the district purchased a few years ago in SE Minot; additions at elementary schools, such as at Edison Elementary; and purchase of land where a new high school could eventually be built in Phase 3 of the plan, givng Minot two 9-12 high schools and turning Central Campus into another middle school.
Vollmer has said that voters could be asked to approve a $32 million bond issue next spring for Phase 2 of the project and that public forums will be held. The architect's plans would be displayed at the forums where people can give input.
Vollmer said enrollment is likely to grow substantially in the next five to six years and the district won't be able to meet educational needs without more space. There are 753 children enrolled in kindergarten this fall alone. The district's three middle schools are built to hold a total of 1,570 students, but the district is projected to have more than 2,000 children enrolled in grades 6-8 in another six years, said Vollmer. If current growth continues, the number could be at about 2,461; without any more growth the number would still stand at 2,004 students.
Additions are being built at Longfellow and Lewis and Clark Elementary to handle some of the growth in the district, but southeast Minot is short on space. Vollmer said there are nine portable classrooms located outside Washington Elementary this school year.
The board also gave approval for bids for a library renovation and re-roofing project at Minot High School-Central Campus that had been pushed back due to last year's flood.
Greenberg Roofing had the low bid of $91,115 for the roofing project; Hight Construction had the low bid of $304,900 for the library remodel. Funds will come out of the district's general fund.
Vollmer also announced that board president Jim Rostad has been elected vice president of the State School Boards Association.