SCHOOL TO END THREE DAYS EARLY

The Cape Girardeau School District will lop three days off the school term this year because of the good weather.

The school board adjusted the calendar during a special meeting Monday. The last day of classes will be May 26.

"I thought this would be kind of a nice gesture for faculty and staff and students because we had three days built into the schedule," said Superintendent Dan Steska. "We will still have 176 days of attendance, which is well above the state's required number of hours of attendance.

Missouri law requires about 175 days of classes.

Board members also accepted a bid from Sides Construction to build an addition and complete renovations to Franklin Elementary School. Sides, the only bidder, estimated the project at $633,333, nearly 12 percent more than estimates.

After Steska and the contractor met, the board accepted a reduced bid of $629,656 for the project that includes installing glass backboards in the gymnasium and a tile floor in the cafeteria.

The renovation project calls for the existing gymnasium to be converted into a library and cafeteria over the summer and the new gymnasium completed by mid-December. Steska said market delays in filling steel orders delayed the gymnasium's completion date. It was to be done for fall.