Shafter pupils use cafeteria as classroom, eat on tarps

Some students at Shafter Elementary School have been using the library and cafeteria as classrooms since last school year while three portable rooms have sat vacant on the campus for about two years, leading an area legislator and parent to question the state Department of Education about the delay.

DOE officials said the portable classrooms need to be renovated and get an electrical upgrade before they can be used.

They were moved from Daniel K. Inouye Elementary, formerly Hale Kula at Schofield Barracks, to make way for a project at that school, DOE said.

That was before the design for the renovations was completed. The department said officials also had to wait for funding and approval from the Army to move forward.

The 500-student school is over capacity by 40 to 50 students, which is equivalent to two rooms, according to the DOE. The cafeteria and library have been used to accommodate 55 students. The department expects the three portables — one delivered to the school in December 2014 and the other two in July 2015 — will be up and running by next school year and that the library and cafeteria will be restored at that time.

Because students cannot eat in the cafeteria, they pick up their lunches from the cafeteria and eat in their classrooms or outside, weather permitting, on picnic tables and tarps. The school’s librarian takes carts of books to classrooms for students to borrow materials. Students also have access to ebooks.

“The school has found a creative way to ensure no disruption to student learning and has had positive results,” said DOE spokeswoman Donalyn Dela Cruz in a statement, adding that there has been no decrease in the number of books borrowed. “Not only have the Shafter Elementary students adapted to the temporary setup but they’re also being exposed to problem-solving challenges by working together.”

But Anita Hurlburt, whose two sons attend Shafter Elementary, said the situation has been frustrating and that part of the problem is that she has not been able to get updated information. She said her second-grader, who reads at a fourth-grade level, does not always find appropriate books from the librarian’s carts. Her kids also come home with headaches from sitting outside during lunch, she said.

“I just do not like the fact that the kids are sitting outside and eating,” said Hurlburt, whose husband is retired from the Army. “We do understand there are times that things just don’t work out. But as parents we can try to help out. We have a major stake in making sure that we get the school situation taken care of as soon as possible.”

The contract for work, which includes renovation and relocation of the portables, as well as mechanical and electrical work, was awarded in September for $1.9 million, and the notice to proceed was issued Tuesday, according to the DOE.

“It was expected that the portables would sit on campus while the design, bidding and construction took place,” Dela Cruz said. “Reusing old portables can save the department up to $100,000.”

But state Sen. Donna Mercado Kim (D, Kalihi Valley-Moanalua-Halawa) criticized the DOE for the delay, adding that the department should have done a better job in planning for the portables. She expressed frustration in trying to get answers from the DOE about the situation.

“This is like the right hand is not sure what the left hand is doing,” she said. “This is not like it happened overnight. DOE should’ve been aware of that. This is just a microcosm of some of the problems in our schools.”