Cushing ISD broke ground on Tuesday for a new $10.75 million elementary school that should be finished and ready to welcome students in 15 months, school officials said. Nearly every student and faculty member took part in the ceremony marking the beginning of a new era for the Cushing school system.
At 59 years old, the current elementary school is older than most of the teachers who work inside it. It was also where many of them took their own first steps as students. So it was a bittersweet occasion for board members, most of whom also walked the halls of the old elementary school as youngsters, who turned the dirt on what is promised to be a technologically advanced primary school building.
"It is never easy to say goodbye to an old friend. But, sometimes it is necessary," said CISD School Board President Brett Reeves, speaking to students and community leaders Tuesday morning about the old elementary building that will be used for the last time next school year.
School board members debated renovating the existing building, but Reeves said they quickly came to the conclusion that a mid-20th century school just wouldn't cut it for children born in the 21st century.
"As buildings for the 1950s went, the old building was an impressive structure, and as I said earlier, it has served the community of Cushing for 59 years, Reeves said. "But it is not 1950 any more. We're in an entirely new century, and the technological demands of this new century have quickly outpaced the architectural concerns of a bygone era."
CISD Superintendant Michael Davis called the occasion "a once-in-a-lifetime event," as he told students how important they are to the community.
In May, the vast majority of voters in Cushing ISD boundaries elected to pass the bond that will pay for the new school. The district has up to 20 years to pay off the bond, but school officials expect to pay it off in just 10 years. In that same 10-year period, CISD will receive $10.8 million from the new owners of the biomass power plant that is scheduled to have its own ground-breaking in nearby Sacul next week.
Michael Davis thanked voters for approving the bond and outlined his expectations for what this new building will offer Cushing's youngest citizens.
"The world's changing, and we've got to do things better for our kids. We applaud everyone who took part in that (election)," he said.
The ceremony was concluded with a reading by fourth graders who told their peers about what they're up against in the current global marketplace when China, the world's most populated country, has more honor students enrolled in their schools than all American students put together. They spoke of how the top 28 percent of India's smartest make up more than the entire population of North America.
"The Cushing Independent School District is going to be competitive with the world one day," Davis said. "And we're going to have the best elementary school in Nacogdoches County when this is finished. But we're the best, regardless. Because it's not the building that makes the school; it's the people inside it. But if we treat every kid like they're our own, we're going to have the best school in America and the best school in the world. I really mean that."
CISD is also currently using existing funds to build a new $1.2 million football field, bleachers and track. Science lab renovations and a new band hall are expected to cost another $1.2 million and will also be paid for through existing district funds and are not part of the school bond.
Neither project is expected to affect the construction of the new elementary school. If enough money is left over from either project, CISD is also considering improving the parking lots, office facilities and concession stand, which is all estimated to cost another $1.2 million.
