Providence School to move back to former home

Published 10:05 am Thursday, December 21, 2017

The Providence School in Wilmore is scheduled to move back to its former home in Nicholasville for the 2019-2020 school year.

A project to renovate the alternative school’s former home, at 200 Computrex Drive in Nicholasville, is scheduled to begin at the end of this school year and will involve renovation to the front of the building, raising the rear of the building and adding a two-story structure to the east of the current facility.

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“The renovation needs of their current facility in Wilmore far exceed the Kentucky Department of Education facility expenditures allowable for a school serving 160 students,” said Patrice Jones, director of school community and public relations for Jessamine County Schools. “The amount of renovation money that KDE will approve for the school is based on the number of students and will not allow the district to address the needs of the school in the current building.”

Due to the small number of students when compared to the larger square footage of the Wilmore facility, Jones said the amount of funding KDE would approve would only cover infrastructure and would not be able to address other concerns such as renovations for programmatic changes and upgrades.

“The new location at Computrex will allow the school to be more in line with the typical alternative education program facilities in Kentucky,” Jones said.

Jones said funds for the renovation project at Computrex Drive are allotted from the sale of bonds, as well as funds left over from bond sales and previous construction projects.

Ross Tarrant Architects was selected as the architectural firm. A land survey is anticipated to start next month. The school board has not yet started the bidding process for the construction contract as the project is currently still in the design and development phase.

“We are moving quickly from the planning stages of the The Providence School project to the construction phase, which will begin immediately after this school year is over,” said Superintendent Matt Moore. “The scope of the project is large and will take the entirety of a year to complete. I would like to thank the community of Wilmore for welcoming The Providence School with open arms and for all that they have done to support The Providence School students and staff over the last six years. We regret the necessity to move the school from Wilmore, but realize that the renovation of the Computrex Drive property will allow The Providence School, for the first time ever, to have a school designed just for them.

“The Providence School is already a highly successful state model for alternative schools and I am excited about the opportunities a new facility will offer for our students.”