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LEWISTON — The city’s voters will decide on an expansion for Lewiston High School at the polls Tuesday, Nov. 5, that school and city officials say is needed to bring the high school into compliance with fedral and state standards, as well as accreditation standards.
Lewiston High School was constructed more than four decades ago; it was built and maintained well, and has not required major attention over the years, school officials said. However, much has changed in education, in society, and with students’ requirements; also, there is a real need to move programs out of the basement areas which only were meant for storage.
In 1973, when LHS opened, the choral and instrumental music classrooms were in the basement, as were the art, sculpture and photography classes. After the passage of federal laws concerning the education of students with special needs, a significant percentage of special education services were set up in that area, too. Since the original use was to be for storage, ventilation and natural lighting have been a problem for all students and staff in that area, and the students with disabilities are separated from their peers much of the time.
The proposed wing would provide above ground areas with proper ventilation and natural light to accommodate special education programming and the visual and performing arts, and would be directly connected to the other parts of the school.
An expanded office suite near the main entrance would provide space for high school staff and practitioners from area agencies to better assist students with the growing types of societal issues they are facing. The nurse’s office would be expanded, and it is expected that the student health center, operated by St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center and currently housed on the second floor of the technical wing, would move to the first floor administrative area. A second elevator will give LHS medical staff and community first responders much quicker emergency access to sites throughout the building, as well as provide easier mobility for wheelchair-bound students and staff.
The administrative office area would be adjacent to a new lobby which would be much more welcoming than the current version – featuring students’ artistic creations, while being much more secure. A staff member would sit in a “bubble” at the doors to screen all visitors before allowing entry to the school, and the Lewiston Police Department resource officer’s headquarters would move from its remote location to the lobby. The new area would also provide more classroom space for Lewiston Adult Education classes and community activities.
This addition would both bring LHS into compliance with federal and state requirements and into line with accreditation standards, it would take the school, its students, and, indeed, the community, into the future, school and city offiials said. It must be approved by Lewiston voters Nov. 5 to become a reality.
For more information, visit lhs.lewistonpublicschools.org/lhs-expansion-project-1121be4e# or the Facebook page Lewiston High School Building Expansion.
