Goliad Middle School teachers, students and staff found themselves in a familiar situation on March 2.
Due to backed-up sewage that leaked onto a hallway, part of the school had to be vacated due to health concerns. Goliad ISD maintenance personnel pulled up carpet that was soaked by the leak.
“This one was a little bit more severe,” Goliad Superintendent Holly Lyon said of the leak, which is one of several the school district has had to address at aging campus facilities. “This one got farther into the building, but fortunately not into the classrooms.”
Lyon said the leak had been repaired as of March 3.
“We got the carpet out today and there will be heavy sanitation over the weekend,” Lyon said on March 4. “We had plumbers out the last few days trying to get to the main cause of the issue. We have a temporary solution for now.”
Lyon said the outdoor water lines are metal and are the original lines from when the facility was constructed in 1962.
“The best we can tell is what the professionals are telling us,” Lyon said of the plumbing problem. “The pipes have settled over time and it’s creating some flow downhill. The slope is wrong. That’s part of the problem. We also have some collapsed pipes in areas as well. It’s simply due to the age of the plumbing.”
Goliad ISD will place a $75 million bond issue to voters on May 6. The bond calls for a new middle school, repairs to the elementary school and additions to the high school. Two similar bond propositions were rejected by voters in May 2022.
The school district held a town hall meeting on Feb. 27 at Goliad Middle School to address questions from county residents about the bond.
Goliad ISD will have an information booth at the Goliad County Fair on March 16-17. Two more town hall meetings are scheduled for 6 p.m. on March 27 at Goliad Elementary School and 6 p.m. on April 17 at Goliad Middle School.
Lyon said middle school students have lost between nine to 12 instructional days due to maintenance issues. She said similar maintenance issues at the elementary school have cost students approximately eight days of instructional time.
“We have started to create a contingency plan,” Lyon said. “Our goal is to make sure or do everything within our power to make sure we don’t have to cancel classes and our kids don’t lose additional instructional time.”
•cslavik@mysoutex.com•
