The Alpine School Board gave its commitment Tuesday night to the tune of about $800,000 to help students who struggle in traditional school.
The board voted unanimously to spend about $350,000 to build the first phase of a modular facility on Utah Valley State College's campus to house the new Alpine Life and Learning Center. The 9,800-square-foot facility will be made up of 10 portable units on the corner of 800 South and 1200 West. The college has agreed to lease the land to the district for $1 a year for 10 years.However, feeling completion of Phase 1 will not provide enough space for the district's 2,000 alternative education students, the board also voted to accept bids for the project's 15,000-square-foot second phase. Board members said they support tripling the school's size if they can do it for about $500,000.
"If the center will make a difference, we probably have justification in saying let's make a difference sooner than later," business director Jack McKelvy said when telling the board that it would not jeopardize the district to spend about $500,000 of the $4 million in capital reserve funds to build Phase 2.
Unlike other districts, Alpine does not have a meeting place for assisted study, adult education and community education students. Currently, students attending the community education program do most of their work at home. The program is self-paced with students using learning packets with assignments and learning objectives.
The Alpine Life and Learning Center will implement an experimental teaching technique where learning objectives are taught at the school through hands-on experience in vocational and technological fields. Advisers will tell students the objectives they need to learn in math, science, language and other subjects, and students will decide what method they will use to learn the objectives.
"We're really missing out on kids in the middle and this facility will fill that gap," board member Vance Calder said.
The board increased property taxes slightly last year to fund the center. The district initially intended to locate the school in a remodeled former grocery store in north Orem. However, district officials later decided that the store building was not suitable for the school.
Jennie Barber, director of adult and community education, asked the board to spend the money earmarked for the center in the current budget to build about one-fourth of a 40,000-square-foot facility. She planned to come back the next two years and ask for funding to complete the remainder of the building. She was stunned to find out she might not have to wait.
"This is exciting news for the district," Barber said.
Superintendent Steven Baugh said there would have been a strong push to complete the project and the board likely would have funded it next year. The board might as well build the additional space at today's costs if it feels comfortable using reserve funds, he said.
"If we can do it for $33 a square foot now, we might as well go ahead," Baugh said.
District officials believe being a neighbor to UVSC will encourage students to continue their training past high school. If the college decides not to renew the lease in 10 years, the district will be able to move the buildings to another location.
"If we do things right, then maybe the college will say, `Hey, that's an asset to us,' and they won't want us to move," board member Guy Fugal said.
By using portable units, district officials believe the center can open as soon as this spring.