VIROQUA, Wis. – Viroqua Schools held a ribbon cutting ceremony at Viroqua Elementary to mark the first phase of construction to be completed under one of two referendums passed by voters in the fall of 2022. A $17 million referendum included necessary improvements at both the elementary and middle-high school sites, addressing the most pressing issues including security, accessibility, and educational enhancements.
Voters also approved $3.5 million to expand the Tech Ed space by 7,500 square feet to give adequate space and improve programming for agriculture, woods, metals, and automotive programs. That work is ongoing.
“Tonight is a really really cool moment in the history of Viroqua Area Schools”, said District Administrator Tom Burkhalter. “It marks a journey that is not completely done but we made some critical choices to make sure we were open for classes. Painting some trim is not going to prevent our students from having an awesome experience next Tuesday.”
Burkhalter said the project was two years in the making and expressed gratitude to the voters.
“We were so unbelievably overwhelmed with the support we had in 2022,” said Burkhalter.
Burkhalter pointed out this referendum passed by 30 points more than the referendum in 2018.
“That showed the community was not against anything, they just needed a logical plan,” said Burkhalter. “One that makes sense and one the meets the needs of what our student need right now.’
Burkhalter listed some of the improvements that will improve safety and the overall learning environment.
The parent pickup and drop off area in front of the school is now separate from the bus pickup area. And the parent drive up has a fence to keep kids from darting between cars and create a corridor for parents to pull up to the curb.
The elementary school now has one main point of entry the requires whoever enters to interact with the from office before entering. Previously there were multiple entry doors that was not near the office and people had to be buzzed in, but then were allowed to walk through parts of the school before interacting with staff.
School Board President Angie Lawrence also expressed her appreciation to the community for the financial support.
“Without your support, without you approving this referendum, none for of this would have ever happened,” said Lawrence. “Our students are now safer. They have better facilities for learning. They have better lighting. They have better technology.”
Lawrence also expressed gratitude for staff and teachers who worked through the disruption and administrators that have had to take on extra duties to see the project through.
1995 Time Capsule Opened
A time capsule from 1995 when the school was built was also opened and the contents displayed for attendees. Several of the teachers that were teaching at the school at that time the capsule was put together were there to open it. Among the items inside was a VHS video tape of the dedication ceremony and the building shot by Ted Harris, a T-Shirt designed and used for fundraising, photos of the first ribbon cutting ceremony (Sept. 18, 1995) and of the building, programs and documents about the construction, notes and handmade art work from all the classes that attended the school when it opened.
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