Future of PHS facility still unclear, but students and staff overcoming challenges
What will happen to the high school? Where will PHS students have classes next year? Those are the questions on the minds of Perry County School District 32 staff, students, and families after the March 14 tornado caused extensive damage to Perryville High School.
“We don’t yet have answers to those questions, although we are asking every day,” Superintendent Dr. Fara Jones told the board of education during the April 9 meeting. “Our district representatives continue to work with insurance representatives and consultants to evaluate and assess the scope of damages. Despite our very best efforts to secure our buildings against secondary damages, the recent rains have also taken a toll and those new damages must be assessed. Unfortunately, we just can’t give a timeline yet for when we will have our answers.
In the meantime, learning continues at Perryville High School.
Since returning to campus on April 2, the nearly 700 students who attend PHS are attending classes in multiple locations. The social studies and science classes are located in the Old Senior High School, which was vacated by the Central Office staff. English and math teachers have moved into Perryville Elementary School, business and alternative classrooms are located at the Career Center, and Perry County Middle School has welcomed foreign language, choir, and FAC students, as well as the high-school special education department. In all, 38 classroom spaces were found for the PHS faculty and students, along with office spaces for Principal Shadrick Shafer, Assistant Principal Lisa Martin, and Assistant Principal/Athletic Director Justin Dryer, their secretaries, and the three counselors.
Mr. Shafer told board members that his teachers and staff have been warmly welcomed to their new, temporary homes. “The only reason we were able to get all of the high school students back on campus, receiving in-person instruction, is because the administration and staff of the other buildings went above and beyond to make room for us,” he said. “And now that we’ve settled into those new spaces, the teachers and principals have continued to go out of their way to be so incredibly inviting and accommodating. It’s been amazing. My staff and I are so very grateful, and so very aware of how lucky we and our kids are to be a district that pulls together in tough times like this.”
Mrs. Leslie Ackermann, assistant principal at Perryville Elementary School, said that her staff have been happy to accommodate the high-school teachers and students. “From the beginning, our teachers have just been asking what they could do to support the PHS teachers, and how they could assist in getting the high-school students back to school. We’re all so glad to have them at school, and the little kids just love it when they get to see the big kids. It’s working better than I think any of us imagined.”
PES art teacher Michelle Iffert is sharing her classroom with Mr. Steve Adams, a math teacher at PHS. Mrs. Iffert now takes “art on a cart” to students’ homerooms. “We were so grateful to be able to welcome our PHS colleagues to the elementary,” Mrs. Iffert said. “And we enjoy seeing the high-schoolers during the day, too. We’re a little crowded, but it’s working well for us.”
Mr. Shafer reported that many of his teachers were able to get into their classrooms on March 31 to collect the instructional materials that they needed for the final two months of school. Some faculty and staff, however, have still not been able to retrieve their belongings due to the damage and structural concerns. “My teachers needed to create new learning spaces, some without any of their materials or resources, and 48 hours later, they had students in front of them, ready to go!
“To be frank, it has been nothing short of miraculous to see it all unfold. We brought in over 120 folding tables and over 600 new folding chairs to replace inaccessible furniture from our building,” he said. “It was all hands on deck for two days, and our teachers were able to make it happen with the help of our outstanding maintenance staff.”
Mr. Shafer also praised his students.
“Our high-school students have been very flexible in response to our new placements and procedures,” he said. These new procedures include walking from one building to another between classes. “Spirits have remained high, attendance has been relatively unaffected, and discipline referrals have been few and far between, which is atypical for springtime.”
He said that teachers in the other buildings have been overwhelmingly positive. “Some of them say that they often forget that our high school students are even sharing their space. I’m proud of them for being respectful in their new homes.”
Junior Olivia Bierk said she doesn’t mind the walk between classes. “It’s not too bad,” she said. “It’s like social time, and I like having classes in the elementary school. The rooms are really nice and comfortable, better than we had at the high school.”
Her classmate Clint Sattler said that he’s happy to be in school. “I am glad that we are in school and can finish the school year,” he said. “I didn’t want to do AMI (online instruction), I don’t think it works.”
Adalynn Thieret, also a junior, isn’t a fan of walking to other buildings. “It’s a lot of walking,” she said. “But I’m glad we were able to come back to school, too.”
With about 5 weeks of school remaining, Mr. Shafer said that plans are being made for the usual end-of-year activities.
“I’m happy to report that our Senior Day activities including the Senior Stroll and Senior Signing Day will still be held,” he said. “We have adapted our plans to conduct our annual state assessments, the EOC exams, as well.
“Moving forward, I’m certain that there will be much more to figure out, but I have been humbled and emboldened by the grit and optimism that our school family has shown over the last three weeks.”
PHS Principal Shadrick Shafer (right) discusses a physics project with student Tristan Mickan(left) and teacher Michael Volansky in a classroom at the Old Senior High. While the building constructed in 1938 sustained damages in the tornado, it is safe for occupancy. Ten high-school teachers have set up temporary science and social studies classrooms there.
PHS students including (front, from left) Olivia Bierk, Clint Sattler, and Addalyn Thieret are pictured in their advisory class, which has been located at Perryville Elementary School since the high school resumed classes on April 2. 
PES art teacher Michelle Iffert is sharing her art classroom with Mr. Steve Adams, a math teacher at PHS. Mrs. Iffert now takes “art on a cart” to students’ homerooms. “We were so grateful to be able to welcome our PHS colleagues to the elementary,” Mrs. Iffert said. “And we enjoy seeing the high-schoolers during the day, too. We’re a little crowded, but it’s working well for us.”