NORMAN — It was lacking grass Monday morning, but Truman Primary will be ready for back-to-school night tonight and the first day of class Thursday, said Norman Public Schools Superintendent Joe Siano.

“There’s just a little fine tuning, as there is with any big project,” Siano said of the district’s newest school for pre-kindergarten through second-grade, as he listed an update on bond projects during the Norman Public Schools Board of Education meeting Monday night.

Two classroom additions at Roosevelt Elementary and Whittier Middle School, however, will not be ready for the start of classes, but Siano said the principals are aware of the revised timetable — aimed for completion the beginning or middle of September — and the delay shouldn’t cause a disruption.

“I wish those two wings had been completed, but we’re prepared to deal with that, and they will be completed,” he said.

Gary Clark, project manager with Architectural Design Group, which is organizing the district’s slew of 2009 bond projects, said both parking lots at Norman and Norman North high schools, which were under renovation as part of the projects, have been stripped and are ready for the first day.

Workers still are in the midst of installing the synthetic turf on the football field at Norman North and should be finished this week, Clark said. From there, they will move to replace the grassy field at Alcott Middle School with synthetic turf.

Renovations for lighting at the softball fields for all four middle schools are almost complete, even at Longfellow Middle School, where installation was delayed until last week per a project moratorium for the Porter Corridor, Clark said.

The lighting installation is complete at Alcott and Irving middle schools, and the new poles are in the ground at Whittier and Longfellow middle schools, he said.

A dent also has been made in the district-wide Intelligent Classroom installation, Clark said.

Recently, representatives from Architectural Design Group circulated through the classrooms equipped with the new technology — which includes laptops, document cameras, speakers for sound reinforcement and moveable boards — to ensure proper installation.

“We are literally going in every classroom with a laptop and confirming that every one is operable and properly installed so when teachers get into their classrooms, they won’t have to be concerned if they’re working,” said Mike Mize of Architectural Design Group.

Mize said, by the end of next week, 278 classrooms will be outfitted for the technology, out of 1,100 total. So far, both high schools and Adams and Jackson elementary schools feature the new gear.

Mize said Truman Primary is next.

The first day of the 2010-2011 year is Thursday and Siano said enrollment numbers tally 14,517, compared to last year’s of 14,366.

He said, however, these numbers are preliminary and he expects them to shift within the first two days of school. Final numbers won’t be reported until Oct. 1, he said.

This also means staffing won’t be solidified for a couple of days, as Siano hinted there could be adjustments until enrollment numbers hold steady.

Siano said administrators have been meeting daily since last week to review class sizes and enrollment numbers.

He said the $3.5 million cut from the expenditure budget this year means the district will have to be careful in its employment numbers, and there may be more reorganizing than in previous years.

“When finances are a little tighter, you have to be more exact in your staffing,” Siano said.

In other business, the board also recognized Jefferson Elementary as the Schools for Healthy Lifestyles Rookie School of the Year.

Mike Followwill received the Employee of the Year award from the Central Services Center for the 2009-2010 school year. Also, the Welding Department, including members Brian Baird and Dusty Coker, was named the Department of the Year by the center.

Custodial staff members also were recognized for their work during the 2009-2010 school year. They include:

· Bob Carter, Elementary Associate of the Year at McKinley Elementary

· John Shea, Elementary Associate of the Year at Washington Elementary

· Kim Kwitowski, Secondary Associate of the Year at Whittier Middle School

· Criss Gillen, Secondary Associate of the Year at Norman North High School

Nanette Light 366-3541 nlight@normantranscript.com