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Staff warns overcrowding, safety gaps as district uses portables and repurposed rooms
Summary
Staff at the Galesville-Ettrick-Trempealeau School District said rising enrollment has left elementary classrooms crowded, forcing use of portables and converted spaces and raising safety and accessibility concerns, including a lack of classroom bathrooms; no formal actions were recorded.
At a recent meeting of the Galesville-Ettrick-Trempealeau School District, staff members described rising elementary enrollment that they say has strained classroom space, prompted the use of a portable building, and created safety and accessibility problems.
"This year, we had 2 sections of 5th grade. Those 2 sections both had 27 students in each classroom," said a staff member, describing class sizes that the speaker called "tight." Another staff member said the building now serves more than 270 students and that the district has "no option or a space to create another classroom." The staff members said the district has mixed and matched space to cope with the growth.
Staff cited specific operational issues. One staff member said classrooms lack interior bathrooms, forcing staff to escort students to an office bathroom connected to the public library and saying, "We could definitely use a bathroom inside our classrooms." The speaker described a scenario in which a 4K student who had an accident could not receive assistance in the main bathroom, creating privacy and logistical problems.
As a temporary measure, the district brought in a portable for music class and as a sensory space, but a staff member warned that portables are a short-term fix that pose challenges in Wisconsin winters and may not be as safe when not attached to the main building.
The transcript also records classroom and program constraints: a presenter showed a family and consumer science room in need of renovation for cooking and sewing classes and said art classes led by "Miss Johnson" are at or near capacity, noting "we have, like, a big over a 100 requests for painting." A staff member described an early childhood special education room that was converted from a para break room and said the repurposed space is "not ideal."
None of the provided segments record a formal motion, vote, or timetable for capital improvements. Staff framed the issue as a need for the district to ensure appropriate space for each grade level; they did not specify funding sources, proposed construction timelines, or a specific recommendation in the supplied transcript.
The record in these segments ends without a recorded decision. Follow-up items that remain unspecified in the transcript include whether the district will pursue permanent classroom construction, reconfigure existing space, request capital funds, or present a formal plan to the school board.
