ELY – There was good news and bad news, and praise for the outgoing superintendent, during the Ely school board’s regular meeting on Monday night.

First, the bad news:

Tim Leeson, director of facilities, reported to school board members that janitorial staff discovered last Friday evening that a “sizable piece of plaster” had fallen from the ceiling of the gymnasium. “There was still dust in the air at about 6 p.m. when staff walked in the side door,” Leeson said. “It must have just come down about then.” He reported that the plaster was not wet, and there appear to be no roof leaks or water damage discovered on the initial inspection.

“We are planning for the worst, but hoping for the best, said soon-to-be-retiring Superintendent Kevin Abrahamson. “We are erring on the side of caution right now until we can learn more in a couple of days. With no water damage, it could be that (the plaster) is just a hundred years old. The school’s insurance policy carries a $5,000 deducible.”

School officials brought a contractor in on Monday morning to assess the situation. An engineer was scheduled to visit the school Wednesday to assess the integrity of the rest of the ceiling. “We have to see if we need to do more work and if it is safe,” Leeson said. “I should be able get some answers in a couple of days.”

Meanwhile, the gymnasium is closed to everyone. School board chair Ray Marsnik asked to see the damage, but Leeson advised against it, saying that it wasn’t safe to go into the room. “I’ll take your word for it,” Marsnik said.

With the school year just a week old, gym classes, and volleyball practices, and scheduled games must be shuffled around the closure. Leeson said the elementary classes are utilizing the ice-free hockey arena for gym classes and indoor recess time on rainy days.

The high school volleyball team practiced on Monday at the Vermilion Community College gymnasium, according to Athletic Director Tom Coombe. A home volleyball match that was scheduled for Tuesday night, was moved to Silver Bay. “We play them twice this season so we were able to flip the dates, and they will hopefully be here in October.”

The next home game, scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 19, against North Woods, is still up in the air. “We don’t know if that can be held in the gym here,” Coombe said, “if not, we will look at other options and the first one will be over at Vermilion. We are very fortunate that (VCC) opened their facilities to us.”

School enrollment

Principals Anne Oelke and Megan Anderson reported that 573 students were in school on the first day of class for the 2019-2020 school year, an increase from the 568 K-12 students reported last year.

Oelke reported that it was “ probably the best start to a school year” since she has been here. “We had a positive, mellow start,” she said.

That serenity lasted just a couple of days until the gymnasium was closed last Friday. “Now it’s supposed to rain all week, but we have the arena to use,” she said.

The incoming Kindergarten class jumped to 36 students, up from 29 students last year. The rest of the Washington Elementary class numbers include: first grade, 29 students; second grade, 49 students; third grade, 58 students; fourth grade, 43 students; and fifth grade, 54 students. The total of 269 Washington Elementary students includes 44 students in open enrollment, according to Oelke.

At Memorial High School, a total of 304 students were reported as of Sept. 9, according to Anderson. The Class of 2020 could have as many as 45 graduates, up significantly from 33 graduates in the Class of 2019. The other class sizes include: sixth grade, 48 students; seventh grade, 52 students; eighth grade, 39 students; ninth grade, 49 students; tenth grade, 34 students; and eleventh grade, 37 students.

Coaching need

Due to significant interest in the school’s cross country program, Abrahamson, Coombe and Anderson determined that the district needs to hire an assistant cross country coach. “We have in excess of 40 students in seventh through grade 12 on our teams,” Coombe said. “That includes the boys and girls teams for both varsity and junior varsity, and I think that is too much to ask of Jane (Dusich) to be responsible for. Issues such as liability and supervision come into play as well.”

An assistant coach would cost $1,980 for the season, according to Coombe. “We had money leftover last spring from our golf team, and unless those (golf team) numbers dramatically increase, those budgeted dollars would go unused again. From a financial standpoint, the numbers are negligible for the district,” he said.

He asked for approval from the school board to post for the position of assistant cross county coach. “We have one particular volunteer coach on the team who would be a natural candidate for this position,” Coombe said.

Board member Tom Omerza asked if Megan Devine, a district Kindergarten teacher with as many as four runners in the family, who has been helping out on the team, is the candidate Coombe had in mind.

“If she were to apply, I think she would be a great help with the team,” Coombe said.

Board members agreed to post for the paid position of Assistant Cross Country Coach.

Farewell to Abrahamson

At his last official business meeting at ISD 696, Abrahamson received high praise from school board members for his job performance over the last four years. He is set to resign on Oct. 1.

Erik Erie has worked with Abrahamson all summer to fulfill his on-the-job practicum requirements for state licensure and is set to step into the role of part-time superintendent for Ely schools.

“As this is your last meeting with us, I want to thank you for your efforts here and a job well done,” said board member Tony Colarich.

Marsnik echoed the sentiment. “Your four years here have been very successful,” he said. “We have had a balanced budget for the past four years. Our fund balance grew in each of those four years. We have a strategic plan in place, that was long overdue. We have a new playground. Our window replacement project is continuing, which is a nice improvement to our campus. And we are looking at a major facility improvement project that you helped get off the ground. I thank you.”

Marsnik also thanked Abrahamson for navigating the district through a “couple of bumps in the road,” and closed with a statement from Ralph Brauer, who facilitated the development of the district’s long-range plan: “On a personal note, I think you are losing one of the best administrators I have ever seen, and I have worked with some of the best across the country.”