District 11 reports geotechnical progress at Jenkins; rising sixth-graders may return to wing by August

Superintendent Gull told the District 11 board that preliminary geotechnical reports for Jenkins Middle School identified probable causes of slippage in the seventh- and eighth-grade wing and that remediation steps may allow a partial occupancy for rising sixth-graders by the start of next school year.

Gull said district and independent consultants — including geotechnical engineers and the Jensen Hughes team — are meeting to finalize the report and that the documents will be posted on the Jenkins project web page near close of business the Monday following the meeting. "There is great news in the geotechnical report that says they think they've identified what the challenges, on the slippage part of the seventh and eighth grade wing are," Gull said.

District staff told the board that remediation work will be required on the gym and the media center to permit partial occupancy of the original sixth-grade wing. Gull said the district believes there is time to complete the identified remediation steps so rising sixth-graders can begin the next school year in the Jenkins building; he described the plan as a "partial occupancy" scenario and cautioned that seventh- and eighth-grade occupancy remains undetermined pending the finalized engineer recommendations.

The district said contractors and architects have been engaged and that the next steps are to finalize design and schedule remediation based on the geotechnical recommendations. Gull said parents would receive a letter following the board meeting and the next-day meeting with engineers; the district will post the geotechnical reports and related materials on d11.org and the Jenkins project page.

Gull praised staff and families for their flexibility while students were dislocated to other sites and said the district will continue to accept school-choice permits to preserve family options until the day before school starts. He said weekly updates on Jenkins would continue at board meetings or work sessions.

Board members asked for clarifications about timeline and communications; Superintendent Gull said administration will send a follow-up letter to Jenkins families and provide updates to the board at regular intervals.

No expenditures or bid awards were announced at the meeting; administrators said cost estimates will be provided as remediation scope is finalized with contractors.