Marsing School District holds "New School Handprint Ceremony"

MARSING — The passing of a school bond is always a big task to tackle, but for the people of Marsing, it didn't seem to be a problem.

It's sort of like a time capsule. Nearly 1,000 blue handprints dotting the floor of the school districts brand new middle and high school gym. All part of the new school handprint ceremony.

It’s a construction project that has been in the works since the Marsing School District bond passed in March of 2017.

"We're allowing students to leave a lasting impression on our construction project," said Norm Stewart, the Superintendent at Marsing School District.

Those impressions, or handprints, in this case, were left on the cement of the new middle and high school, shared gym.

"We are very excited to have a new school. We have been in the same school for a very long time, and to have a new gym, with all these new things for these students is going to be really awesome," said Jessica Eubanks, a P.E. and Health Teacher at Marsing Middle School.

The new gym is located on the campus of all three district schools. It’s a project that aids in the growth, safety, and time management of students and faculty; something the location of the current gym doesn't do.

"It's up away from the school, across Highway 55, and so we end up busing kids six periods a day back and forth for physical education classes," said Stewart.

This has been a problem the district knew needed fixing, and when 2015 rolled around, with the past school bond coming off the books, and a 2-year supplemental levy nearing its end, Marsing School District had completely worked their way out of debt.

"The whole point of the bond was to try to make sure that the taxpayers didn't see any tax increase from what they were currently paying," said Stewart.

And that they did, together with the community they passed a $13.5-million bond, for 25 years. Then, when the district went to sell the bonds, interest rates were so low that they were able to reduce the time to 21 years, saving taxpayers nearly $1.43-million in interest payments.

It made for happy voters, and students, "They get to put the floor right there, and we get to remember where it was like, put! There's my handprint! This is definitely mine," said Clancy, a student at Marsing Elementary School.

The gym will be the new home for not only P.E. but also some high school sports, "I can't wait until this is already built, because we're going to play basketball," said Cynthia, a student at Marsing Elementary School.

A hardwood floor will be placed over the prints in the coming days, but the students are sure to have left their mark.

Construction for that new school will be done by next year... But the district plans to have this year's high school graduation in that gym.