There’s a new gym at Long Valley Charter School
The nearly 200 students at Long Valley Charter School in Doyle have a new gym.
Cutting the ribbon at the new gym at Long Valley Charter School during the recent Back-to-School Night.“We worked with the USDA office in Alturas to get the funding,” said Executive Director/Superintendent Sherri Morgan (a $2.25 million contract). “We had the opportunity to purchase the school from the Fort Sage Unified School District — they’ve been leasing that building to us for years. We were able to purchase that and construct the gymnasium which includes two new classrooms … We’re thrilled to have that, and to own the school property. It’s a big deal.”
It’s more than that — it’s actually a dream come true for the small community.
“We’ve talked about the promise of a facility for generations to come,” Morgan said. “Before Long Valley was a charter, it was a regular elementary school. It’s didn’t become a charter until 2000,” after the Fort Sage School District announced plans to close it, and the school staff and community rallied and came together to create the new charter school.
As difficult as it might be to work with a federal government entity such as the USDA, Morgan said the project provides a huge benefit to the south county community.
“There are a lot of levels of approvals,” and red tape involved in such a project, Morgan said. “As charters, we can’t go out for a bond as other school can. The district that authorizes us can go out for bonds, and include projects for us, but we can’t go out and do it on our own, so the USDA was a vital source for us to get it done.”
Athletes at the school participate in the Lassen Middle Schools League, and until now LVCS basketball and volleyball athletes practiced at Herlong High School.
Due to the relatively low numbers of students attending South County schools, the players “collaborate” and play on each other’s teams.
“Those kids are all from the same community,” Morgan said.
The new gym also provides a place for indoor physical education during inclement weather. The new gym also was large enough to accommodate all the parents and students during a recent back to school night. Previously, such events were held in shifts in the school’s multipurpose room.
