Category: public schools

Officials name Outdoor School after Fred Sloan
Matthew Bieniek
Cumberland Times-News The Cumberland Times-News Thu Nov 11, 2010, 07:48 AM EST

— CUMBERLAND — It will be two or three years before any of the three school building projects being considered by the Allegany County Board of Education actually are ready for shovels and perhaps bulldozers, according to Vince Montana, the school system’s director of facilities.

At a board meeting Tuesday night, members heard an update from Montana on the first stage of any school building project in the state, a feasibility study. Schools being considered for repair or replacement are Allegany High School (estimated cost $45.6 million) and Braddock and Washington middle schools (estimated at $28 million each). The study is required by state law for plans to build a school or demolish part of the existing school.

The board is requesting proposals from companies interested in preparing the feasibility study. After that study is completed, the board can begin working with the state on funding for the projects. Once a contract is awarded, current timetables call for the study to be completed in May 2011, school officials said. The board has already committed to retaining two high schools and two middle schools in Cumberland, Montana said.

The study will contain information and recommendations to help school officials develop a capital improvement plan for the schools, said Mia Perlozzo Cross, public relations specialist for the school system.

“The evaluation of this study will measure the condition of the buildings based on current standards, regulations and how well the facility supports the educational program,” said Montana.

Proposals for the study are due at the Board of Education by Dec. 15. The proposals will then be evaluated by a committee appointed by Superintendent David Cox. The school board will consider the committee’s report and make a final contract award for the study, Cross said.

In other action, the board voted to honor C. Frederick Sloan by renaming the Allegany County Outdoor School Program after him. Sloan died in December after a long illness. Sloan began a career with the school system in 1971 and served as a teacher, vice principal, principal and elected school board member.

“Dr. Sloan wanted every child to be able to experience the beauty and wonder of the outdoors, and all that our students could learn from nature. I am very happy that we are able to honor and remember Fred this way,” said board president Karen Treber.

Allegany County’s outdoor school program was reinstated three years ago after a more than 20-year hiatus due to a lack of funding, and Sloan was instrumental in bringing this residential outdoor school back, school officials said. The program allows all fifth-graders to attend camp at the Western Maryland 4-H Center, located in central Garrett County.

Two elementary schools at a time attend the camp in one-week sessions. The 4-H camp staff members are responsible for teaching classes, and regular classroom teachers in attendance assist with lessons, all of which are created to align with the state curriculum standards. The program is free to students and parent volunteers, school officials said.

Contact Matthew Bieniek at mbieniek@times-news.com

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Cumberland Times-News

— Students will be returning to area schools within the next few days, so motorists will need to be on the lookout for them.

This will be particularly true during the morning and afternoon hours, and to be aware of increasing traffic congestion in and around schools and the neighborhoods in which they are located.

Tomorrow will be the first day for students in Mineral County, W.Va. Hampshire County, W.Va., students will return to schools on Aug. 23. Allegany County schools start Aug. 24, and Garrett County begins the new year on Aug. 25.

Just as drivers are urged to be alert, parents should tell their children about some safety tips as they head back to school. Children are unpredictable and not always mindful of traffic safety.

AAA says parents should tell their children to always obey crossing guards, look both ways each time they cross the street, use crosswalks and corners to cross the roads even when cars are not around, not to run or rush, and to remember that motorists can’t always see them.

They also need to know that they are no match for cars, which are are bigger and faster than they are,

For their part, motorists should slow down and obey the speed limits, particularly in school zones and residential neighborhoods, and be prepared to stop quickly for school buses.

The law forbids motorists from driving around stopped school buses, something that has proved fatal for children in our area.

Drivers also should avoid unnecessary distractions. It’s already illegal to text while driving in Maryland, and it soon will be illegal to talk on cell phones.

If possible, drivers also should modify their routes to avoid school zones altogether.

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