August 2022

The 2022-2023 school year is almost here; this one holds more excitement than most for the community as we look forward to our students filing into the new PK-8 building for the first day of school. Of course, when that first day will take place has been the subject of much speculation over the course of the summer.

Quite frankly, workforce shortages and supply chain delays have hampered the construction schedule for the PK-8 building, particularly in the pod that houses our students in grades 6-8. As construction progressed this summer, the district was faced with two options. One, to ensure that the building was completed in all areas before school began, the district could delay the opening of the entire PK-8 building. The district has always strongly believed that it is was imperative to get our students into the new building as soon as possible, so this was never a viable option for the district to consider. Two, Adena could focus most of their resources on the PK-5 wings to ensure substantial completion of those areas. This would hopefully allow the students in grades PK-5 to start school on September 6, with the outside hope that the 6-8 pod would also be completed by September 6th.

We are excited to announce that with the support and tremendous effort by the Ohio Facility Construction Commission (OFCC), Adena, construction manager, Garmann Miller, architect, as well as all of the subcontractors, the school year will begin as scheduled on September 6th for all students in grades 1-12. As is tradition, kindergarten and preschool students will start school a week later. However, there are two small caveats to the start of the school year.

First, on September 6th, school will begin in the PK-8 building for students in grades 1-5; unfortunately, students in grades 6-8 will have to attend classes in the “old” middle school for a few weeks while the 6-8 wing is fully completed. For that, I do apologize.

Second, certain construction and inspection milestones have to be met and approved by local and state jurisdictions before the district can take occupancy of the PK-8 building. The OFCC, Adena and the district are confident that these milestones will be met to allow school to begin on September 6, but please understand, if they are not, the start date for the school year could be pushed back a week or so until those milestones are resolved. If this were to happen, the district will communicate this information to you immediately. As mentioned earlier, the district strongly believes that it is imperative to get our students into the new building as soon as possible, even if the school is not 100% completed. As a result, as the school year begins, finishing touches will be taking place on certain aspects of the building during the evenings and on the weekends. Thank you for your understanding.

Moving all of our students onto one campus is very exciting, but it does create change, which can certainly be challenging at times. Please know that for several months, the Shelby staff has been laying out plans to ensure a smooth transition for students, staff and families. Throughout this newsletter, you will find information that will answer many of the questions you have about the new school and how it may impact your child or family. If you don’t find the answer to your questions, please call 419-342-3647 (DOGS). Ultimately, we want you to be as well informed as possible, so please, don’t hesitate to ask questions.

The summer of 2022 has most certainly been busy for Shelby households but I hope you have been able to spend time together and enjoy some fun family activities before the start of the school year. Thanks again for your incredible support, stay safe; go Whippets!

Tim Tarvin
Superintendent, Shelby City Schools