Middlesex Elementary School to be advertised for sale
New, larger facilities leave no use for the building
When the Mars Area School District adopted a campus concept in 2003-04, students were consolidated into buildings on Route 228 in Adams, leaving Middlesex Elementary School out of the mix.
Students moved out, and the district’s special education and pupil services department moved in. Now they, too, will be leaving because the school board voted Tuesday night to hire appraisers and to advertise the sale of the school.
The special education and pupil services department will move to the administration building once that building is renovated.
Board President J. Dayle Ferguson said stipulations will be placed on the sale of the Middlesex building requring that the organizations currently renting classroom space there would be able to stay until their leases expire.
Mrs. Ferguson said the district does not see any future need for the Middlesex building.
“In the past 10 years, we have fully embraced the campus model, making capital investments in buildings and infrastructure to accommodate our rising student enrollment and academic program needs,” she said. “With foresight, we are poised for additional student capacity in our current configuration and know that there are options for expansion on campus when necessary for future growth and program opportunities.”
Mrs. Ferguson said no staff cuts will be made with the move. All employees in the Middlesex building will move to other Mars Area facilities.
In addition to allowing the current renters to remain until their leases expire, solicitor Tom King said other stipulations will be placed on the sale, including not allowing the building to be used for adult entertainment or alcohol sales.
Mr. King said they will ask for appraisals, then place the property for sale. Any sale must be approved by the board, then approved by Butler County Common Pleas Court.
In other action, the board approved curriculum leaders and initiative coordinators for the coming year. They doubled the number of curriculum leaders in order to have all buildings covered with an on-site leader to help with technology integration, said Elizabeth McMahon, director of elementary education.
“There are always going to be ‘go-to people’ working alongside of the technology people. We are trying to saturate as many people as we can with the technology skills,” she said.
Last year’s curriculum leaders agreed to take half of the stipend in order to double the number of leaders, so the move is not costing the district additional funds, she said.
Mrs. Ferguson announced that two “meet and greet” sessions will be held with new superintendent Wesley Shipley, who joined the district July 1. They will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday and 7 p.m. Aug. 18 in the lobby of the high school auditorium.
“In the past 10 years, we have fully embraced the campus model, making capital investments in buildings and infrastructure to accommodate our rising student enrollment and academic program needs.”
J. Dayle Ferguson, board president