Inside the Abby K-12 additions
Members of the Abbotsford School Board sidestepped puddles of mud and piles of construction materials on Monday as they toured the new classrooms and other facilities being built throughout the district’s K-12 campus.
Led by Blake Bargender, a field engineering intern at Market & Johnson, board members got a closer look at the $17 million work-in-progress approved by district voters in April of 2024, authorizing the district to construct 10 additional classrooms (four at the elementary and six at the middle/high school), plus a new library, expanded parking lot and a variety of room renovations.
Some of the new facilities will be ready for the start of school in a couple weeks, but much of the construction will continue into 2026. The new library and the six-classroom cluster are slated to be finished by Christmas break, while the four new elementary school classrooms are set to be done by March.
Following a ground-breaking ceremony in April, multiple crews have been working to build out the two new classroom clusters and reshape the main high school parking lot on the east side of the building. Inside, a variety of tradesmen, from electricians to masons, have been reshaping portions of the school in preparation for students to return in September.
Board members started their tour at a new delivery receiving area at the back of the school and then checked out the four-classroom cluster at the elementary before making their way through several hallways and classrooms, stopping along the way to hear administrators talk about the improvements being made.
STAFF PHOTO/KEVIN O’BRIEN
“It will be a great learning environment for kids,” said middle/high school principal Melissa Pilgrim, referring to the high school class, which recently got new flooring and equipment.
The tour group also stepped onto the newly expanded high school parking lot, which now has dedicated drop-off and pickup lane for parents and students and 28 new parking spaces. With blacktopping happening this week, the lot should be ready in time for the start of school, Bargender said, with a total of 57 spaces available.
New cell phone policies
Students at the middle school will be required to turn off their cell phones and leave them in their lockers during the school day, while high schoolers will be asked to place their devices inside a plastic holder during classes.
Those are the rules included in newly updated student handbooks approved by the board on Monday.
Pilgrim said administrators have decided that allowing high school students to keep their phones within sight, but out of their hands, during class is the best option at this point. At the middle school, however, students will not have the option of carrying their phones or other devices around with them during the day.
The new policies for personal communication devices (PCDs) build on previous ones already written into the student handbooks. Another change clarifies the rules for the use of these devices between classes: “Use of PCDs at any other time, including passing periods and lunch for high school students, will be determined by the staff. If a device is needed, a school issued device will be issued.”
A four-step disciplinary process is also in place for students who violate the rules, starting with confiscation of a device until the end of the school day for a first offense. A second offense will result in a meeting with parents, followed by confiscation and four hours of detention for a third offense. For fourth offenses, students must check their devices into the office at the start of every school day and have them returned at the end of the day.
Changes related to PCD usages were also made to the employee handbook, with the goal of having teachers and other staff members mirror the type of behavior they would like to see among students, according to superintendent Ryan Bargender.
Board member Kraig Schindler questioned what the definition of “emergency” was for staff members who want to respond to a phone call or text during the day. Superintendent Bargender said it could include anything from receiving test results from a doctor to communicating with a spouse, but it would normally only involve calls expected ahead of time.
“If you don’t know what it’s for, you really shouldn’t be answering it,” he said.
At the same time, Bargender said staff are free to use their phones and other devices during their lunch period and other sanctioned breaks throughout the day. When staff are supervising students, however, he said they are expected to have their full attention on the kids.
The board approved the new student handbooks unanimously, but Schindler cast the lone no vote against the staff handbook.
Other business
■ The board accepted the resignation of Sydney Falteisek as middle school boys basketball coach and approved the hiring of Marisol Avalos as an elementary teacher’s assistant and Amber Soppa as a middle/high school administrative assistant, replacing Renee Heindl. Anadelia Martinez and Tiffany Riemer were also approved as cook helpers.
■ Pilgrim told the board that the high school has struggled to find a new Spanish teacher to replace Brian Popp, who resigned last year to take a principal position at Colby Middle School. Even though it’s not ideal, she said the school will need to teach some classes virtually until they can find a new teacher.
■ The board approved two new policies, including one that governs the hiring of consultants and another that deals with the promotion of students from third to fourth grade, which includes new state rules for students who require personal reading plans under Act 20.
