Tuesday at 7:45 a.m. and it's off the bus and into the classroom for the some 700 Lew-Port High School students. While there are plenty of familiar faces, there are so many new lessons to learn, and not just for the kids.
- After eight years, Community Education classes are back at Lewiston-Porter CSD
- Learn to cook, bake, swim, or speak a new language
- All students will now have either a Chromebook or iPad
The school district is bringing back its Community Education Program, said Jodee Riordan, president of the Lewiston-Porder school district’s board of education.
After eight years, Riordan said the district is happy to welcome the community back to the classroom along with students.
"More than 300 people have already registered, so they realize this is a great opportunity for them as well," she said.
The upgraded computer lab is available for graphic design and photography classes.
The state-of-art fitness center is a hub for exercise classes. Or, for $55, people can get a year pass. The pool will be used for life guarding and swimming.
"Everything from finance courses, to art courses, to computer courses, to cooking to foreign language” are among the classes available, Riordan listed.
In total, there are 112 classes. Riordan said there's a greater lesson to having the community come in and take a seat. It goes beyond the classroom.
"We feel like we have a responsibility to everyone to make your life a little bit better," Riordan said. "For the children, that is to give them the world, to allow them to grow and become not only wiser but better people."
There's another lesson for students this year beyond the books. It starts with stripping down parts of the high school to its studs.
"This is the commons area, formally the guidance suite," Paul Casseri, Superintendent of Schools said.
Casseri said the common area will be an open space for students to sit and chat, watch the school news, grab a coffee, even charge their cell phone.
"This is a foundation for post-secondary, college-life and then workplace experiences," Casseri said.
It’s phase two of a more than $9 million capital project. Casseri said the renovation was designed with an innovator’s mind set.
The district isn't stopping here.
"We are now officially one-to-one,” he said. “That is every student will have a device in their hand.”
Students in kindergarten through fourth grade will have iPads, while grades five to 12 will have Chromebooks.
"Using technology to create a more responsive, innovative environment," Casseri said.
Whether it's the students or community, opening a book or typing a question on a computer all leads to the same final lesson.
"You never should stop learning, there is always something you can do," Riordan said.
Lew-Port’s community education classes are open to everyone. For those who live outside the district, there’s an extra $5 fee to enroll.