Latest news with #VCSC
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
VCSC holds Annual Construction Trades Student Recognition Banquet
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) —The Vigo County School Corporation (VCSC) honored students in their construction pathway program during a lunch banquet on Monday. The Annual Construction Trades Student Recognition Banquet started back in 1986, and since then, students in the Vigo County School Corporation have built homes for the community while earning college credits, all before graduating high school. Technical Education Director for the school corporation, Doug Dillion, said this program exposes students to new and different experiences in the workforce. 'So programs like this expose kids to those different career opportunities that use their hands. A lot of people, they don't want to sit at a desk for the rest of their life and be what's called a pencil pusher. These kids, when they graduate, will be able to go out and pick something they really love, and they've got some skills with their hands, and they will be able to work in different environments. You know, every day is a different day,' said Dillion. Jackson Page is a Junior at Terre Haute North High School and said the hands-on experience he has gained from the program is even helping him do better in school. 'Sitting in a classroom, I don't really pick up on knowledge that well, but learning hands-on has definitely helped me a lot with just having a better time at school and also learning what I need to… There is never a dull moment when your their working together. I mean, I got many stories I could tell about things that have happened in this class. I always go home with something new to tell them,' said Page. Page said after graduation, he plans on doing five years in the Carpenters' Union, and then once he gets his Journeyman Card, he will attend Ivy Tech in the hope of getting a degree in construction management. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Vigo County schools add new pre-K programs as enrollment begins April 1
The Vigo County School Corp. is adding pre-K programs for 3- and 4-year-olds and two new locations for the 2025-26 school year. Enrollment for pre-K begins April 1. "We are super excited as we begin this new enrollment period that we have additional programs to offer," said Teresa Stuckey, VCSC director of elementary education. The district's pre-K programs are Paths to Quality Level 3. "We know that the early years of a child's life are very critical in their learning and we want to offer those programs that will give them the best chance for success," Stuckey said. The district is offering six new pre-school classes, three for 3-year-olds and three for 4-year-olds. The new locations are Fayette Elementary and Sarah Scott Middle School. The district will offer a class for 3-year-olds and a class for 4-year-olds at Fayette Elementary. At Sarah Scott Middle School, it will offer two 4-year-old classes and a 3-year-old class. Enrollment is on a first-come, first-served basis. "It's really important to get on that right away," Stuckey said. Full day pre-K is $21 per day and is weekdays from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.; it follows the VCSC calendar. Half-day pre-K is from 8 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. or noon to 2:40 p.m. and follows the VCSC calendar; the cost is $10.50 per day. Many families will qualify for CCDF, or the Child Care and Development Fund for 3-year-olds, or On My Way pre-K vouchers for 4-year-olds to pay their tuition. According to Stuckey, families in Title 1 districts who apply, but do not qualify for CCDF or On My Way pre-K, may qualify for a Title 1 waiver. Children must turn age 3 or 4 by Aug. 1. New student enrollment also opens April 1 for students in kindergarten through grade 12. "We really are looking for those kindergarten parents to get enrolled by no later than April 30," Stuckey said. That will ensure that as the schools plan their parent visits and send out communication, parents of new kindergarten student will receive those communications. For more information about early learning programs, visit
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
VCSC cancels extracurriculars due to storm warnings
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV)— Many extracurriculars are being canceled Wednesday by the Vigo County School Corporation (VCSC) in response to the possible coming storms. According to a news release from The Chief Communications Officer with the VCSC, all middle school practices and activities Wednesday evening are canceled. The releases also stated that all high school activities and practices would end no later than 5:15 p.m. on Wednesday evening. The Vigo County Aquatic Center has also canceled all practices including middle school swim and Terre Haute Torpedoes. Tonight's Public Policy meeting has also been canceled. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
09-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Tribune-Star Editorial: Community's biggest decision lies ahead — modernizing schools
The most consequential decision facing the Terre Haute and Vigo County community will be its investment in modernizing the local schools. A commitment must be made to provide the county's youngest residents 21st-century facilities in which to learn. By 2040, just 15 years from now, today's Vigo County School Corp. kindergartners will be in college, military service or the workforce. The county's existing high school structures would be nearly 70 or 80 years old by then, if still in use. West Vigo and especially Terre Haute North and Terre Haute South high schools already show their age and obsolescence. The average age of all VCSC schools is 43 years. None of the five middle schools were built in the 21st century. The newest elementary schools are now 21 years old. Gibraltar Design — an Indianapolis architectural firm studying the feasibility of options to address the school district's facility needs — says those needs are 'heavy' at North, South and West Vigo, as well as Woodrow Wilson and West Vigo middle schools, and DeVaney, Ouabache, Rio Grande and Sugar Grove elementaries. Gibraltar gave an update on the findings of its district-wide study, still ongoing, to the Vigo County School Board on Monday night. Some sort of action will have to occur. Vigo County kids deserve an education in an atmosphere that maximizes their education. Committing more funds into repairing the aging schools is becoming less cost effective. This latest VCSC facilities study, like the previous ones, will be valuable and merits broad public attention. The turf it covers is not smooth and easy. The Vigo County and Terre Haute population has remained static, and most significantly the family-age sector has not grown. As VCSC Superintendent Chris Himsel pointed out at Monday's meeting, the school district included 20,000 students in 1972. The K-through-12 enrollment's decline since then is expected to dwindle to about 12,500 in the next few years. Of course, the prime stumbling block — as always in any community — is funding. That element is complicated in the Hoosier state, given the property-tax caps put in place early in this century by the Legislature, limiting the traditional source of funds for school maintenance. The primary method for raising property-tax funds for a major school construction project is a public referendum, and the Indiana General Assembly is considering limits on when such referendums can occur. And, a 2022 facilities referendum on a $261-million project to rebuild and renovate the Vigo County high schools and West Vigo Middle School was resoundingly defeated by voters. That outcome raised questions about whether the county would ultimately end up with fewer than three high schools, once those buildings finally wore completely out. So, this new feasibility study will study options on how to handle upgrading the local schools at a time when enrollments are dropping. Meanwhile, a group of community elected officials and legislators are supporting a bill in the Legislature to create a local oversight board and facilitate the potential use of county funds for VCSC facility improvements. The aim would be to find funds for a facility upgrade without a tax increase or referendum. It is a tough needle to thread. But something must be done. As Himsel put it, the School Board and VCSC must 'make sure we meet the needs that our kids have and our teachers have, which is to upgrade facilities. We want to make sure our facilities enhance learning, and not detract from learning.' It is hard to tell what conclusions may be reached, but hard decisions are ahead.
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
VCSC School Board offers update about facilities
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO-WAWV) — The Vigo County School Corporation Board of Trustees addresses several issues. One dealt with the an update regarding a facilities study. Superintendent Chris Himsel said there are corporation buildings that need improvement. Gibraltar, an Indianapolis architectural firm, has helped the corporation look at different ways to address the facility needs. Himsel says the board is nearing the point where some decisions will need to be made regarding facilities. He said we have a history of keeping the debt service rate and the overall tax rate pretty level, but the corporation still has lots of needs. 'We've also learned that the amount of money to keep our buildings updated, we don't have enough money to do that between the property tax caps and other things that we have to follow,' said Chris Himsel, superintendent VCSC. Himsel said all of the those things, plus a declining enrollment means the board will have to figure out a way to move forward. The board also discussed a book called 'The Hate You Give.' Several teachers spoke about the book before the board. Himsel the board passed a policy to review curriculum, and the book is being reviewed. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
