Shelbville ISD looking to future with fieldhouse construction

• Ray West, Superintendent, gives the SISD Board of Directors his superintendent’s report during this week’s board meeting. David Danely | Light and Champion

david@lightandchampion.com

Community Writer

Light and Champion

Approval of a major budget amendment was the main action item at the regular meeting of the Shelbyville ISD board held Monday, Sept. 9.

“This will pay for the construction of the new fieldhouse. Also auxiliary things that go with that, which is the storm drain repairs we’ve talked about and also, partial, or maybe the whole thing, as far as the parking lot expansion,” SISD Superintendent Ray West told the board.

West said that the anticipated completion date is March of next year.

Middle school principal Patty Bays led off the principal’s reports.

“We are well into the new school year. This week is Homecoming, so there’s a lot of activities and dressing up and having fun. The kids are really excited,” she asserted.

Bays said that elementary UIL will start Dec. 11 with practice beginning next week.

“We’ve re-zoned, so it’ll be different competition, but I think we’ll do well,” she said.

Bays reported that the Inchy’s Bookworm vending machine has proven to be very popular with the students, with many books being donated by parents.

“The kids love going up to the machine and putting their token in and pushing the button like candy,” she said.

“I think we made a good transition into the school year and things seem to be going smooth and well, so we’re excited about that. We have some new employees that just made a great asset to our campus and they seem to be doing well,” Bays continued. “There’’s a lot of good things going on at the elementary and we appreciate y’all’s support.”

West commented that the elementary school Grandparents’ Day this year was quite a success.

“I appreciate y’all putting that on. I thought it was well done. It was well attended, that’s for sure.”

Bays responded that about 429 grandparents and students were served by the food service department on the special day.

“The kids are doing well. The teachers are doing well. I would say we’re very fortunate to be able to have enough staffing,” Mario Osby, high school principal, shared with the board in his report.

“Some schools around here don’t have quite the staff that we have. They don’t have certified teachers in the classroom at all, so a lot of them are going through computers,” Osby said. “We are very fortunate to have what we have here and it’s all due to what y’all do and what y’all allow us to do.”

“Middle school’s wonderful. We’ve gotten off to a great start,” middle school principal Lacy Carter declared.

“We’ve had wonderful donations to our kids closet. We use that all the time, either for a child in need or a kid who spilled something or we correct dress codes in there a lot. The community’s really shown up for that,” Carter said. “I’m super proud of the new hires that we have this year. They’re fitting in nicely and the kids are already complimenting them but they’re great teachers, so that’s good.”

In his superintendent’s report West pointed out the need to upgrade the school’s wastewater treatment plant in the near future due to the growth the district has experienced.

“I think at some point in time we’re probably gonna have to look at renovating and expanding that because we’re just a bigger school,” he said.

West also asserted that he was proud of the way Shelbyville’s students and athletes represent the school.

“I think the qualities we look for in our kids show up when they’re competing, whether they’re winning or losing. I like the fact that our kids are representing us the way they need to and they play hard and they give it all they have, so I’m really proud of them.”

West also had praise for the amount of students participating in the band.

“It’s really amazing for a 2A school what we’re gonna have,” he said.

In other business the board approved the school health advisory council membership, the migrant student plan, the monthly financial reports and minutes from its August meetings and changed the meeting time for its Nov. 11 meeting to noon.