David Wilfong
At the April 13 meeting of the Royse City Independent School District’s Board of Trustees, it was reported that the new intermediate school on Blackland Road is nearing completion — at least structurally.
“If you had to, you could have school in it in two weeks,” said Jerry Gallagher of Gallagher Construction Management, who added, “The key phrase being ‘If you had to’.”
The board was told that the floor is 95 percent complete, with the wood flooring slated to be installed this week. The sheet rock was installed with the taping and painting done. The kitchen was only lacking one appliance from being fully outfitted. The only major drawback still pending was the sewer.
“The sewer’s gonna be tight,” Gallagher said, stating that the completion of the lines would be 45 to 60 days out.
Gallagher said that the school was ready for visitors and invited the board to stop by anytime for a tour. RCISD superintendent Randy Hancock suggested that the board meet at the site early before the next regular meeting for an organized tour.
The next meeting is slated for May 11, and the board decided to meet at the school site at 5:30 p.m. The new intermediate has been named Harry Herndon Intermediate School. The existing intermediate campus has been named in honor of Ruth Cherry.
The April 13 meeting was also the first regular meeting to be held in the recently renovated school district headquarters, which has been renamed as the Ernest Epps Education Service Center located on Old Greenville Road (formerly Browning Primary School).
Gallagher complimented the board on the appearance of the building and jokingly threatened to hire away the district personnel who worked on the project.
At the suggestion of Hancock, RCHS senior Sean Smallwood became the first person to use the podium in the district’s new board room as he demonstrated his speed-reading skills for the school board. Smallwood, along with Camille Flores, Stacy Hood and Morgan Morman presented a program on cross examination debate as the team had won district and was preparing for regional competition. Kaley Dusek joined Smallwood, Flores and Morman in presenting speeches on school bus safety that will also be the focal point of an upcoming speech competition.
The school board also ordered a cancellation of the upcoming election as only sitting incumbents filed candidacy paperwork to be on the ballot. Incumbents who will remain on the board for three year terms are Don Palmer, Dr. Rhonda Phillips, and Charlie Carroll. Julie Stutts has filed to continue serving on Place 7, to which she was appointed when a trustee resigned.
The school board also elected to adopt the athletic department’s “RC” logo as the district’s official logo. Prior to the board meeting, the district was using a different logo which, according to Hancock, many people had said “looks nothing like an ‘R’ and a ‘C’.” The athletic logo is already featured on the new stadium and sports uniforms and has become the more recognized emblem representing the district.
The board of trustees has changed the day for regular RCISD meetings. The school board now meets on the second Monday of every month.
