Cleveland’s contract extended; positions still open for 2023-24

RIO RANCHO — All systems seem “go” for the start of the 2023-24 school year, which begins July 31 with the return of the teachers.

Although a few projects won’t be complete by the time students are in the classrooms, Superintendent Sue Cleveland informed those at the June 26 meeting of the Rio Rancho Public Schools Board of Education meeting that they’ll be completed in a timely manner.

There has been a lot going on since the 2022-23 school year ended in May: Cleveland told the board more than 400 students had participated in “credit recovery” in the first summer school session, with another 326 signed up for the second session.

Before the meeting ended, Cleveland’s contract for the coming school year was unanimously approved.

The district still needs 53 teachers (11 STEM and 15 instructional staff among them), 11 counselors, five custodians and four security workers, with other positions in good shape, such as only one bus driver sought.

The board officially approved the $80 million bond question for voters on Nov. 7, an election in which District 2’s Amanda Galbraith and District 4’s Noreen Scott’s school board seats are up for election.

And Cleveland told the board about new scoreboards being installed at the varsity baseball fields at Cleveland and Rio Rancho high schools. A new scoreboard for the Storm, where Cleveland’s sons James and Royce once played, will be welcomed, with Cleveland noting it’s “been a challenge; you can’t see it, you can’t read it.”

That’s because it faces west, and the afternoon and early evening sun angles make the numbers on it nearly impossible to discern.

Rio Rancho Councilman Bob Tyler and state Rep. Joshua Hernandez, who came up with $60,000 to afford the new scoreboards, were thanked by the district and retiring RRPS Athletics Executive Director Bruce Carver for that.

Also, former Rio Rancho Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Noreen Scott had some questions when the latest chapter of the Career-Technical Education building when a CMAR* contractor was to be approved.

Bradbury Stamm Construction, which has completed numerous projects for RRPS, will be the general contractor for the CTE renovations, with subcontractors.

But when Bradbury Stamm was the highest-rated bidder among five bidders to become the CMAR, Scott was curious:

“Are we asking (Bradbury Stamm) to ‘value engineer’ it and the build it?” she asked. “So, we’re asking them to figure out where we can save money – the very people who will be building the building?”

Facilities Executive Director Patrick Martinez tried to allay her fears, noting that Bradbury Stamm will do its best to help guide the design, “help make decisions based on the budget,” and that about 7% is recovered by Bradbury Stamm on each of the subcontractors, with Scott wondering if that was “an advantage to get us a lower price?”

Nonetheless, the bid for Bradbury Stamm to supply the CMAR was unanimously approved.

The board also recognized and commended:

• The Cleveland High boys’ track and field team for its seventh consecutive state title in a row, and Carver termed the Storm a dynasty and said the Storm are “a powerhouse in the world of track and field, not only in the state of New Mexico, but in the United States – that is no exaggeration;”

• The Rio Rancho High School baseball team, which won its fourth state title under the leadership of the winningest baseball coach in the state, Ron Murphy; the team went 27-2-2 this season and won four tournaments;

• New Executive Director of Facilities Patrick Martinez for the PNM Fuel Efficiency Award earned recently, basically attributed to HVAC replacement and upgraded lighting;

The board also approved, after the mandated second reading, changes to Policy 1003 (open enrollment), which provides flexibility for children of military members; and heard first readings for Policy 903 (Student and Staff Health and Wellness) and Policy 1015 (immunizations).

Also approved were a revised contract with Southwest Food Excellence, which provides breakfasts and lunches for students, and a pre-application for Special Services Executive Director Jerry Reeder, who seeks reimbursement for excess costs for his department in providing for students with disabilities.

The next regular school board meeting is set for July 10.

What does CMAR mean?

* CMAR is an acronym for construction manager at risk, because the recipient or subrecipient and construction manager negotiate a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) during the design phase, the construction manager will be responsible for any costs that exceed that amount. While CMAR can be a complex process and the specifics of the delivery method will vary by jurisdiction, if done properly, it can yield time and cost efficiencies by obtaining construction manager input during the design phase and beginning aspects of a construction project before the full design is complete.