Main topics are construction, planning, growth, accolades
An update to the City Council was recently provided by Superintendent Dr. Cathy Walker on construction projects at Newcastle Public Schools, and student activities.
Walker was in attendance at the December Council meeting to address Mayor Karl Nail, and council members Gene Reid, Marci White, Mike Fullerton and Todd D’Amico. She said the outside of the largest project from the 2022 bond issue is now almost complete.
A new front at Newcastle High School (NHS) is real close to being complete with the contractors putting the last layer of material on the building’s front, Walker said.
A new high school cafeteria with murals composed of yearbook photos is complete. Walker said this will help keep the history of Newcastle alive. She added that there are stairs coming from the cafeteria up to the library.
Walker said the high school band room/safe room is to be completed by March 2026, and the outside to the facility is almost complete.
She said the teachers and administration are very excited about both the new high school chemistry lab and the new Family and Consumer Sciences (FACS) room. The chemistry lab will be a stateof- the-art facility similar to college classrooms. The new FACS room is a double room with a full kitchen which offers both gas and electrical appliances, and will accommodate cooking and sewing classes, etc. The new facilities will accommodate the growth expected in these programs, Walker said.
Completed bond issue projects include air conditioners at the high school gymnasium, a Newcastle Early Childhood Center (ECC) playground, a Newcastle Elementary School (NES) playground, safety panels at NES, new LED lights at the NHS stadium, a road at NES, a new addition at Newcastle Middle School (NMS), and new band uniforms and instruments.
Walker said several safety and security items have been purchased. These include weapons detectors, intercom systems at NES, NMS and NECC, and a radio system, bus cameras, and other updated security cameras.
Future projects include the installation of safety glass around all the offices, at the NMS cafeteria and at the NECC library, and a buzzer system at the school’s administration building.
Councilman Todd D’Amico noted that although the City and School are two different entities with two different boards, “we are one community and what we do impacts the other.”
He said he knows the school system works well with the City’s administration, and it was nice to hear an update from the superintendent on school activities.
Walker said the school system did not pass the $10.7 million bond issue on November 18, but will be trying again. The Board of Education is currently planning when to run another election. Walker said they can go to the Mc-Clain County Election Board before April 2026 and schedule another bond issue for the June 2026 Primary Election, or they can choose to put the new bond issue before voters in the Runoff Election in August 2026.
She said because of the growth the school district and community are experiencing, any new bond issue should pay off at the same time as the school’s current bonds.
While the Board of Education works with a bond committee composed of Newcastle residents to determine the projects they want, the last issue requested funding for safe rooms at the upper elementary school, renovations at the track, additional seating at the football stadium, and a land purchase for a future elementary school and an agriculture facility.
Walker said one of her favorite things to do is brag about the school district. She said the focus is on the students. Newcastle Public Schools has 2,596 students with 367 staff members, and it is now a Class 5A school. Walker said they are doing well in not only athletics, but the arts, as well. She provided the City Council with a three-page document filled with accomplishments. Among them were post-season accolades in practically every sport. There were accomplishments in band, color guard, vocal music, five State FFA degrees, and a successful student-led fundraiser through STRUT Week. She said there were 190 graduating seniors last year, with five valedictorians, and 76 National Honor Society members. Last year’s seniors earned $1,218,698 in scholarships.
“I am proud of the kids both academically and athletically,” Walker said. “We have some great kids here.”
An added bonus for the students and teachers is that the Newcastle Education Foundation started back up in the spring of last year, Walker said.
She said, “They’ve put back in the classroom $5,500 in grants.”
