Dr. Ken Sauer School readies for class

By Tim Kalinowski on August 24, 2017.

Dr. Ken Sauer School is nearing completion, with just a few final touches to go before the school year begins in September.--NEWS PHOTO TIM KALINOWSKI

tkalinowski@medicinehatnews.com @MHNTimKal

The Dr. Ken Sauer School build is in the final stretch, and the school should be ready to go by the first day of classes, says principle Jason Peters.

Peters offered local media members an exclusive tour of the nearly complete facility Wednesday afternoon.

“There are lots of last-minute finishes and deficiencies to finish up, but we are in the building and we starting to set up classrooms,” said Peters. “We have about 250 students registered so far.”

Peters said the experience of going to school at Dr. Ken Sauer should be a great one for new students.

“The school is a beautiful building … So much natural light, so much open space where we can connect classrooms or find smaller (breakout) areas for kids to work. We are really excited to see it put to use.”

The new facility’s versatility is key, explained Peters, with adjustable classroom spaces and a heavy emphasis on environmentally sound design. The building should meet the LEEDS Gold standard when completed, the highest environmental rating for a public structure. And with advanced, modular features, there is room for future growth.

“Our core is built to handle 600 students,” stated Peters. “We don’t have the classroom space for that yet, but that is where the modulars would come in. We are starting with two and we have the ability to add 10 more over the course (of the life) of the building.”

The playground will be another attractive feature. Designed by Blue Imp with an emphasis on accessibility, the playground represents a massive plus for the school, said Peters. Community partners also kicked a lot of donations to ensure a first-rate structure that should be the largest school playground in the city when completed. Peters is hoping Hatters will come out this weekend to help with the volunteer build.

“We are doing a volunteer build this Friday, Saturday and Sunday,” said Peters. “We are really needing people on Sunday. We’re building from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. If people could call the school office and let them know they are coming we could plan for lunch, because we are providing lunch.”

There will also be public viewing opportunities for the new school today at 6:30 p.m., and Friday at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. All members of the public are invited to come out, not just parents.

“There is a number of different opportunities,” he said, “not just for parents but for the whole community.”