Newsletter

The Facilities Advisory Committee held its fifth meeting on February 18, where we took a deep dive into enrollment projections for our district. Currently, we are seeing incoming classes of 60–70 students while graduating classes range from 85–100 students. Based on these trends, our projected enrollment over the next 5–10 years is expected to stabilize between 800 and 900 students districtwide.

This data is critical as we evaluate potential facility improvements. If we move forward with building a new school, we must carefully consider its size, the number of classrooms, and the long-term capacity needs of our district. Enrollment projections also play a key role in our discussions about the possibility of consolidating from three school buildings to two. The committee is currently exploring configurations that include either a K–5 or K–6 elementary school, paired with a 6–12 or 7–12 junior/senior high school. While no final decisions have been made, this option appears to be a cost-effective way to modernize our facilities while meeting the needs of our students.

Under this potential plan, the Henkle/WPSIS building would be repurposed as an elementary school, with necessary updates to support younger learners. At the high school, we reviewed conceptual ideas for enclosing the campus by constructing an "in-fill" between A Court, C Court, and the library. This would eliminate the need for students to go outside between classes, improving safety and functionality. However, since the current high school is 55 years old, any major renovations could trigger costly seismic and ADA compliance upgrades, making this approach potentially expensive.

To better understand the financial impact of these possibilities, the committee has asked the Construction Services Group to provide cost estimates for both the in-fill project at the high school and the construction of a new junior/senior high school.

It is important to emphasize that all discussions remain preliminary. The committee will continue meeting monthly to refine these options, weigh costs, and explore additional possibilities. We appreciate the community’s interest and engagement in this process and will continue providing updates as our work progresses.

Next Friday, March 7, marks the end of the second trimester of the school year. It’s hard to believe we are already 2/3 of the way through the year. March 7th is a 12:05/12:20 early release Staff are provided time to finish grading student work so they can enter final trimester grades.

We’re also nearing the end, but not quite out of the woods yet, of winter weather. So far this year we’ve had one snow day, which we made up this week on Monday, February 24. The school calendar has three more built in snow days for the remainder of the year. If we don’t have any more snow days, then those days will become non-school days. The built-in snow days are March 17, April 28, and May 23. There are also two snow day make up days tacked on to the end of the school year, should we need them. Please pay attention to communication from your student’s school for information related to the school calendar.

As a reminder, the 2025-26 school year calendar is already set. You can find it by following the link below.

2025-2026 School Year Calendar

Congratulations to the Columbia High School Knowledge Bowl Team who competed in the Regional Tournament in Longview on Monday. In the 1A schools division, Columbia High School defeated 8 other teams, taking home the regional championship for the first time since 2017 and the 3rd time in the last 20 years. This championship also qualified the team to compete at the state tournament which will be held at Wenatchee High School on March 22nd. Good luck to the team, consisting of Kiki Barnheimer, Jack Cieloha, Anders Daly, Milo Hoppus, Garrett Kock, and Travis Rodgers.