The school year may be over, but the De Soto School District has been a busy place this summer.
The De Soto School Board of Education unanimously voted May 21 to hire ABC Quality Moving in Crystal City to move 25 classrooms’ worth of furniture, instructional materials and equipment due to the restructuring of the elementary level buildings. The district paid the company $10,944.
Under the restructuring that starts this school year, Athena Elementary will house kindergarten through second grade students and become De Soto Primary. Vineland Elementary will become De Soto Intermediate School and house third through fifth grade students.
“During the week of June 8, ABC Quality Moving began transporting furniture and materials between buildings and (returned) the week of June 15 to finalize remaining moves,” said Joshua Phipps, assistant superintendent of operations.
According to board documents, the De Soto Classroom Teachers Association recommended the use of a professional moving company as a practical solution to help staff and ensure the relocation was completed in an organized and timely manner. District officials said the move would have taken three times as long using just district resources.
“I think (using movers is) going to be enormously beneficial to our folks to be able to continue other work that needs to be done,” Phipps told the Board of Education after the vote to hire the only company that submitted a quote. “I think it’s a very good decision – money well invested for our district and our people.”
Superintendent Ron Farrow commended staff for their preparations for the elementary level restructuring.
“Our administrators and teachers have been tremendous throughout the past two years of planning for the building changes,” Farrow said. “They have invested significant time in preparing both instructionally and logistically to ensure a smooth transition for students.
“This includes collaborating on grade-level alignment, planning for student needs, organizing materials and preparing for classroom and room relocations that will take place this summer.”
He recognized a change of this magnitude is not easy, but staff have remained “focused on what is best for students and have approached this work with professionalism, flexibility and a positive attitude.”
“We are incredibly appreciative of their efforts,” he said. “The collaboration and dedication shown by our staff has been the key to making this transition an overall improvement for our district, and their work behind the scenes is helping ensure a seamless and successful start for students and families.”
Eventually the signs on the buildings will change to reflect the new names.
“We will be working to update building signage over the next year or two,” Farrow said. “Some of the exterior signage may be completed in conjunction with our roofing and HVAC projects this summer, similar to the signage updates completed at the middle school (which added sixth grade) last summer.”
Other projects
The elementary level move is just one of several projects this summer.
Phipps said several major projects funded by the $19 million Prop 4 Dragons bond issue approved in April 2024 are under way, including HVAC system upgrades, roofing improvements, construction of a high school vestibule and ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) accessibility improvements to the corridor at De Soto Primary.
“(At the high school), construction of the new secure vestibule is progressing quickly,” Phipps said. “Demolition of former office and foyer spaces began immediately after students departed for summer and rebuilding efforts followed immediately.
“Roofing and HVAC projects remain on schedule. Installation of large rooftop HVAC units temporarily impacted gym usage and summer camps, but the interruption was minimal and work continues to move forward.”
In a separate project, the high school gym floor was expected to be refinished the week of June 22.
At the middle school, roofing and metal work are progressing throughout the campus, where essential campuswide summer school programs (credit recovery and extended school year services) are being held. Phipps said HVAC work will begin on that campus when summer school ends June 25.
Additionally, siding replacement is underway at the secondary campus auditorium.
“The middle school cafeteria siding was replaced earlier this year,” he said. “Replacement is the result of prior storm damage. The project is being completed through insurance coverage, with only a $2,500 deductible cost to the district.”
At the Intermediate School, HVAC, roofing, painting and classroom movement projects are underway.
“Work continues at or ahead of projected timelines through coordination among contractors and district teams,” Phipps said.
The same projects are underway at the Primary School, but also the ADA project and the installation of new playground equipment. Phipps said most painting, relocation and playground work is already done.
At the Early Childhood Center, the previous playground has been removed and replaced with a new playground. He said administrative offices were relocated within the building to better support families and staff.
Phipps said teachers and work study students have been painting classrooms districtwide.
“This initiative created summer work opportunities for staff members whose typical summer school schedules were reduced this year due to construction and relocation efforts,” he said. “With classrooms already cleared for moves, crews have been able to work efficiently and are currently ahead of schedule.”
Work study students are helping to remodel a former district storage house for office space for the maintenance and food service departments. They have also helped with annual grounds improvements.
“This year, student workers partnered with school resource officers to identify opportunities to improve Safety Through Environmental Design (STED),” Phipps said. “A major focus area involved removing and trimming oversized landscaping to improve visibility around buildings while enhancing overall campus appearance.”
Earlier this summer, materials and furniture from the Dragon Annex were relocated to a new location on the secondary campus.
Phipps has commended the maintenance staff for all their work.
“District maintenance and custodial teams continue balancing these large-scale projects while maintaining regular grounds upkeep and responding to work orders across all campuses,” he said.
Phipps said all of the summer construction projects are progressing on schedule and should be completed by Aug. 1.