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Edith Teter Elementary School in Fairplay, Colorado was
built in 1880 and is the oldest continuously operating elementary
school in the state. The district would like to donate the
historic stone building to the town or state historical
society to serve as a museum. It is a fine example of 19th
century architecture, but it is not an adequate educational
facility for 21st century learning. To begin with, The school
is 25% over capacity, requiring classrooms in trailers for
the overflow. Inside the antique building are tiny classrooms,
sufficient for the population of a 19th centruy mining town
on the frontier, but not nearly large enough to allow for
modern educational curriculum. The heating system is an
historical artifact and not functionally adequate. Ventilation
amounts to opening and closing the single pane windows.
The wiring is an ineffective afterthought since the building
was built without electricity. Plumbing is rudimentary,
not dependable, and only available on the first floor. In
addition to desperately needing a new modern elementary
school, the other district buildings have a long list of
needed repairs and renovations as well. Due in part to its
obsolete facilities, the district has lost 10% of its students
as some parents would rather drive their children over the
pass to Breckenridge and its new state-of-the-art schools.
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