Cape superintendent gives Jefferson update

Despite school not being in session, Jefferson Elementary has been a hub of activity during the summer.

To go along with the normal summer procedures of emptying classrooms, waxing floors and making minor fixes to rooms, the district is in the midst of numerous large scale projects.

Neil Glass, superintendent for Cape Girardeau School District, described the current state of the district as "a lot of moving parts," some of which will be completed by the start of school, and others that will finish up in the fall.

The south side elementary school will be adding a new cafeteria area and in-house preschool by the beginning of the school year. The new gymnasium and pool are expected to be completed by the end of October. The $11.3 million improvements include a bubble for Central Municipal Pool at Cape Girardeau Central Junior High.

Construction for the most part has run smoothly with the biggest stagnating factor being around 20 weather days, he said.

The City of Cape Girardeau is working on a corridor connection using College Street connected to Minnesota Avenue and South West End Boulevard, and is working in partnership with the district to create a park behind Jefferson Elementary.

"It is really something special to see all this come together at one time," Glass said.

The projects, and the partnerships with the city have been years in the making.

They are being funded through multiple avenues including a $4 million bond issue based in 2019, $6.5 million from the city's Parks, Recreation and Stormwater Tax, as well as capital project funds and pandemic era grants.

Glass said sometimes it's not about the cost of the improvements but "the kids lives you are impacting," something he said city officials, educators and many in the community understood.

"But there are those naysayers that want to sit back and just worry about the money, and it's not always about the money," Glass said. "Of course, you've got to be able to afford the things you are building, but sometimes it's about an investment in your community and what's right and what's wrong."

Glass added later, "We want to make sure that we invest in all parts of our city, you know, and Jefferson Elementary in this southside is no different."

The improvements to Jefferson are an important way to provide support to the area, Glass said. He described the last three school years of battling COVID-19 as trying to fight a wake. The disease, he said, is like a big tug boat leaving massive ripples in everyone's lives apart from illness.

"The wake that it puts off is much more dangerous than the COVID itself and that's what we've been having to fight, you know, the attendance and some behaviors and some of the mental health issues and the social and emotional well-being of some of our students, staff and community members," Glass said.