The first day of the new school year was Tuesday, but Ecker Hill Middle School students and their families weren’t exactly sure what they would be walking into beyond hearing that there would be sections of the school still under construction.
While rumors circulated among the community — and even district employees — the Park City School District didn’t give a lot of details about how school would look in the facility until after students began class Tuesday.
Administrators at the school similarly remained vague on details, citing district policy that communication with the media must go through the district.
Tuesday morning, district spokesperson Heidi Matthews specified that Wing A of the school, a newly constructed portion with 12 classrooms, was incomplete.
“EHMS leadership developed a contingency plan allowing students to be educated in existing sections of the school if Wing A was not ready for opening day,” she said. “Most impacted classes will be held in rooms available during the educator’s preparation periods, with some shorter periods, like advisory, accommodating larger groups.”
She said the district estimates students will be able to occupy Wing A starting next week on Aug. 26. Before then, workers need to finish data wiring, the intercom system, internet and phone access.
With a lack of information shared even as students packed their backpacks and look up their bus schedules the day before school starts, parents — including Park City School Board member Meredith Reed — were frustrated.
Reed, who has a child attending Ecker Hill, said she’s received no information about the delay and ongoing construction through official district channels and has instead had to rely on vague messages from the school’s staff and parent teacher organization.
On Aug. 14, she received an email from the PTO letting her know sixth grade students would not be able to visit their classrooms or lockers during registration. A monitor cycling through photos of the school visible by the building’s visitor check-in showed Monday that many lockers are surrounded by construction materials and projects.
On Aug. 16, she received another email from Ecker Hill Principal Garret Rose informing parents that the district’s “construction friends are finishing up the appropriate measures” and thanking them for their patience and understanding.
On Aug. 19 at 8:10 p.m., Superintendent Jill Gildea sent an email to the school’s families stating Wing A was incomplete. The email did not say how the school would operate without access to 12 of its classrooms.
“As a board member, I have not received any communication about that,” Reed said. “It seems that they’re not familiar with the ‘bad news does not improve with age,’ guidance on communication.”
Like many in the community, she’s been left to parse the situation through whispers and stories making their way through the grapevine.
One district faculty member, who spoke to The Park Record on condition of anonymity, had heard 12 classrooms would not be ready for students, and that some kids would not be able to access their lockers.
Matthews has since addressed the locker concern, saying every student has a locker.
There have also been concerns about whether the school passed an inspection last week. Summit County and Park City officials have said they aren’t responsible for the school’s projects due to a state code that specifies certificates of occupancy.
“They missed a deadline they’ve known about for years. Why is that?” the faculty member said. “The district does not have students’ and families’ well being at the forefront.”
The Park Record reached out to the state Board of Education with questions about the building’s inspection and certificate of occupancy and had not heard back by Monday evening.