Reeva Martin


Kettle Falls School District (KFSD) was awarded grant money to implement safety upgrades throughout its schools. With less than a month until the first day of school on September 3, it’s a race against the clock to complete the updates.


Kettle Falls Elementary School is at the center of the construction. Superintendent Micahel Olsen shared that the building was built in the 1950s; the electrical, plumbing, and other systems were still almost entirely original. After the school district received state funding and grants totaling $6.5 million, extensive work, testing, and repairs got underway, including addressing concerns of lead exposure. The main building’s plumbing is to be upgraded from the original galvanized steel to copper, and, if repairs do not meet safety standards, under-sink filtration systems will be installed.


Superintendent Olsen explained that the funding for these projects became accessible from the state’s Climate Commitment Act, available only this year, along with a new $1 million dollar grant from the Department of Health, available to 31 districts for HVAC systems. The majority of funding – $5 million – came from a state program to support school related construction in districts with fewer than 1,000 students. This will help cover the cost to update electrical service and distribution throughout the school, HVAC, and windows. Finally, the Urgent Repair Grant contributed $500,000 primarily to address the urgent plumbing concerns.


Another point Superintendent Olsen highlighted is the job provisions for the 20-plus trade workers and their families, which invests taxpayer funds back into the local community.


Superintendent Olsen noted that the funding for the education system is not keeping pace with inflation. In an effort to increase functionality, and decrease costs, a variety of health and safety


investments were made. Brand new hot water heaters, and an overhauled boiler room. New energy efficient lighting, with emergency backup power – in central areas of the main building. Another change in the next weeks will be new windows, temporarily replaced with particle boards, seen from all sides of the building.


The Kettle Falls Early Learning Center is introducing new operational changes to create a transparent and safe environment for students. This includes hiring new staff members and welcoming in newly available programs that, as Superintendent Olsen said, “will streamline communication.” The hope is that these upgrades will encourage parents to communicate, in the newly provided channels, directly with teachers and staff, according to Superintendent Olsen. He also hopes to provide “our parents with better information, in a little more convenient way.”


In regards to the effects of COVID-19 on day-to-day education, Superintendent Olsen said “these are not the same students we were working with 5-6 years ago.” Superintendent Olsen observed that the isolation still seems to have an effect on children’s academics and social development due to the limited options during social distancing. However, the online wave COVID-19 brought seems to be advancing tools for educators that were not readily available prior to the pandemic. Superintendent Olsen expressed gratitude that the students are back in classrooms and are able to practice social skills and nurture friendships, commenting that this works well with his distributive and collaborative management style. His focus is leaning on teachers’ experience and making sure decisions are made with the voice of all.


Along with the building upgrades, the high school and middle school football programs are being tackled with enthusiasm. “We’re looking forward to our football season returning to what it was before COVID,” Superintendent Olsen said, with the first full varsity team schedule at the Kettle Falls High School.


Kettle Falls Elementary School will hold their open house to show parents and students the completed building construction. Updates can be found on the school district’s website www.kfschools.org or via their Facebook page as they begin to implement these new changes.


Orignial post: https://www.statesmanexaminer.com/news/local/kettle-falls-school-district-receives-6-5-million-in-safety-upgrades/article_ff4c1366-5a5d-11ef-9894-137a04b3c30d.html