Category: GFPS

A School Board Trustee recently lowered the BOOM on a Great Falls citizen by using the “I” bomb to describe his associated intellectual level.

Laura Vukasin, can you tell us how you really feel about the taxpayers of our community?

“Laura Vukasin, can you tell us how you really feel about the taxpayers of our community?”

It all starts in a public forum comment section on E-City Beat discussing the upcoming School District Operational Levy, “Do School District Levies Ever Expire?”. A member of the public asks a simple question.

Chuck Harling April 13, 2018 at 1:22 PM

“Question to ask – why do all the buildings and grounds employee’s drive their district vehicle home at night. I followed one van that goes all the way to Stocket. Must be nice to have the tax payer pay for your fuel to drive back and forth. Check it out if you don’t believe me. I heard that it was because they needed them if there was and emergency in the district. Haven’t heard of a lot of painter or carpentry emergencies. Just ask why.”

This question was passed on to Superintendent Lacey via email by Cyndi Baker and on April 18, 2018, Superintendent Lacey responded via email.

“Thank you for bringing the concern indicated in the email below to my attention. The District’s response is in red:

• Why do all the buildings and grounds employee’s drive their district vehicle home at night?  All the Buildings and Grounds (B&G) employees don’t drive their vehicles home at night.  The Painter, Electrician, Plumber and Carpenter Foremen do as well as the Supervisor and Assistant Supervisor of Buildings and Grounds.  All other vehicles, including the technology vans, are left at the B&G Headquarters at Little Russell.

• I heard that it was because they needed them if there was and emergency in the district. Haven’t heard of a lot of painter or carpentry emergencies.  The Foremen are allowed to take their vehicles home because they are on call.  Unfortunately, we have vandalism that occurs in our school district and most of it occurs at night or on weekends.  This happens more frequently than one would think.  When noticed by police, by the very early morning custodians, or on weekends when there are events, the foremen and supervisors are immediately called to the site.  As to the “painter and carpentry emergencies,” questioned by Mr. Harling, they are the ones responsible for fixing broken glass (GFPS cuts and installs most of our own glass) and mitigating graffiti.  Most recently, the Painter Foreman replaced a window that was broken at a basketball tournament on a weekend at GFHS and the next week sandblasted some obscene graffiti off of a wall at an elementary school before students arrived to see it.  Plumbers and electricians are often called out as well to troubleshoot and repair boiler problems and water line breaks. Their vans have the necessary supplies and equipment for emergency repairs.  The Supervisor and/or Assistant Supervisor accompany the on-call foremen so there is another pair of hands to do the work.

• I followed one van that goes all the way to Stocket.  One foreman does live in Stockett.  The efficiency and efficacy of having this foreman immediately available with all of his supplies at any time, versus having him drive to his van at the Headquarters, far outweighs the price of gas to and from Stockett.“

Lacey’s response was passed on to other members of the District, including the School Board Trustees. When Trustee Vukasin received the information she evidently went ballistic, and wrote in an email:

“I am so thankful that those of us who work for/with the GFPS district have enough to do so that we don’t feel it necessary to follow a GFPS work vehicle home every night…..absolutely unbelievable the ignorance of some people….”

So, a taxpayer who is concerned about the District’s stewardship of our hard-earned dollars asks a logical question, and in return his question is labeled as one of ignorance by a sitting school board member? We believe she should be asked to resign immediately. What do you think?

MONEY

“Why is it that the further away you get from kids, the more money you make?”

Spencer Campbell spends much of his days walking the halls of Elk Ridge Middle School, checking breezeways for kids playing hooky, redirecting foot traffic between classes and checking on substitute teachers.

Campbell is one of two assistant principals at Elk Ridge, a school just south of Salt Lake City, Utah. 

Before coming to education, Campbell owned a small business. He says he felt drawn to schools, though, so he got a master’s degree and spent five years in the classroom as a teacher.

“The effect that a classroom teacher has on a student is second only to a parent,” Campbell says  . “

Campbell reports that it was very hard to support his family making $43,000 as a teacher, so he became an administrator and doubled his salary.

Campbell says. “And as an administrator, I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to have that same effect and that’s kind of heartbreaking.”

https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2017/06/01/530887882/increasing-salaries-so-teachers-dont-have-to-become-principals

Are we losing great teachers to administrative positions? Probably. Should we cut administrator’s salaries in order to raise teacher’s salaries and keep them in the classrooms? Probably.

Below you will find the District provided list of Administrative positions and corresponding salaries totaling $4,593,558.00, including days contracted. From the total amount the District notes that $326,319.00 is not paid from the General Fund.

Using a multiplier of approximately 1.5, that brings the effective cost of administrative salaries to over $6,000,000!

“As of June 30, 2017 Montana’s Governor’s salary was $108,167 – GFPS Superintendent Tammy Lacey’s salary is $150,000.

The State of Montana’s Superintendent of Public Instruction earned a salary of $104,635 – GFPS Assistant Ruth Ueker’s salary is $122,020.”

As of June 30, 2017 Montana’s Governor’s salary was $108,167 – GFPS Superintendent Tammy Lacey’s salary is $150,000. The State of Montana’s Superintendent of Public Instruction earned a salary of $104,635 – GFPS Assistant Ruth Ueker’s salary is $122,020.

Should we be asking – “Brother can you Spare ANOTHER Dime?”

You can view, download and share a PDF copy of this entire GFPS administrative salaries list here. Why not print off copies to hand out and email to all of your friends, family, and neighbors?

Did you know that the number of administrators employed by the Great Falls Public School District is now one more than it was at this time last year? The number of administrators, which includes school principals, has gone from 42 to 43 with a reported salary cost of $4.2 million.

This was confirmed by GFPS Superintendent Tammy Lacey in an email to a citizen dated January 16, 2018:

“I confirm that the number of administrators increased by one but contend that the quantity of work and more importantly, the quality of the work…are worth adding to the administrative footprint.” – Tammy Lacey, January 16, 2018

“I confirm that the number of administrators increased by one…”

If you figure in the standard multiplying factor of 1.5 used by most employers to calculate the actual cost of employees that comes out to around $6.3 million.

Maybe it’s time to consider whether the GFPS has too many high-paid generals and not enough boots on the ground. It appears they are not hearing our message to cut back on administration costs.

Maybe the taxpayers need to send that message a lot more loudly and a lot more clearly this May 8th when it comes time to vote on the school tax increase.

The Great Falls Public School District is currently running a campaign to promote another school tax increase and they’re paying for it, in part, with our tax money. One of their favorite slogans is “Facts Matter” yet the fact that our tax dollars are being used to convince us to give them even more of our tax dollars is a fact that they never seem to mention.

But we agree – facts do indeed matter. That is why E-City Beat will be posting brief facts about our school district and it’s funding on a regular basis starting with the following:

Do school levies ever expire?

The short answer is ‘No’. Levies are different from bonds which do expire after the voted upon time period – usually 20 years. Levies become part of the permanent funding that school districts rely on in order to build their budgets each year.

Here is a description of the difference between the two:

Bonds and levies are two different ways for a municipality to raise revenue. A bond is debt, offered to the public, which must eventually be repaid with interest. By contrast, a levy is a tax that  towns and counties impose on local property owners in order to raise money for services.

“The bottom line is that we are all still paying taxes on the levies that were voted upon in the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and every year since that a levy passed. That also means that we are obligating future generations forever to the tax increases that may pass on May 8th this year.”

The bottom line is that we are all still paying taxes on the levies that were voted upon in the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and every year since that a levy passed. That also means that we are obligating future generations forever to the tax increases that may pass on May 8th this year.

Vote wisely Great Falls.

Need To Expand, The Ideas, The Money, The GFHS Legacy. Is The School District’s Proposal The Best Solution? 

NOTABLE EVENT 2017:  Great Falls High School’s historic original building was recognized in 2017 by Architectural Digest Magazine as one of the Most Beautiful Public High Schools in America. 

During 2012 the Great Falls High School Heritage Foundation (GFHS-HF), an independent nonprofit organization founded by Darrell A. Swanson (GFHS 1965) and Phillip M. Faccenda (GFHS 1965) initiated the historic window replacement program and coordinated efforts with the District for a demonstration project.  To replace the Kalwall windows, GFHS-HF selected, recommended, and gained approval for the appropriate historic replacement windows, provided engineering models and comparative values, established compliance with the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), prepared bid documents, and through donations successfully funded the first six windows of the program.  It continues with GFHS-HF and the Great Falls Public Schools Foundation.

 

GFPS PROPOSAL NUMBER ONE

The District intends to expand the GFHS campus because, as many times before, the available spaces do not have the capacity to provide the education services needed.  So another development process began approximately eight years ago.

In February 2010, Dr. Cheryl K. Crawley, Great Falls Public Schools Superintendent, established a task force to study the physical plant at GFHS. The task force’s charge was to recommend improvements and changes to the buildings, grounds, and physical plant of the high school so that the school can continue to provide a high-quality education while remaining at near-capacity in terms of enrollment. Dr. Crawley’s report noted that GFHS currently has dining facilities too small for the size of the student body; requires students, faculty, staff, and the public to unsafely walk outdoors during winter weather to move between buildings, lacks an adequate HVAC system (particularly in moving fresh air into the interior as well as moving air around inside the building), cannot accommodate high-bandwidth computer or phone lines, and has poor cell phone, television, and radio reception.

Because of the need for those upgrades, GFPS started the process to master plan the expansion of the facilities.  Local Architect, L’Heureux Page Warner, was hired for a fee of $150,000 to assist with space programming and to study master planning the campus.  LPW’s $59M proposal showed a two-story bridge connecting the 2^nd and 3^rd floors of the main campus to the south campus, removing the existing Industrial Arts building, adding parking to Kranz Park and the practice field, and adding new parking at the corner of 2^nd Avenue and 20^th Street.  There was community opposition to this plan by citizens and alumni of the school.  Mainly because of high cost and the proposed design direction. Letters to the Editor were written and a large billboard against the initial concept appeared. The first master plan proposal was ultimately rejected by the school district.

GFPS PROPOSAL NUMBER TWO

The Great Falls Public Schools Superintendent changed to Tammy Lacey and the process continued.  Hulteng CCM, Inc., headquartered in Billings, MT, was selected to manage the $98M school district wide development project.  The school district conceptualized a second GFHS maste rplan proposal and included it in the bond request to the tax payers.  There was again certain community opposition to this plan.  Mainly because of high cost, concern about the three-story connection to the historic structure, parking scattered on the campus, and centralized outdoor storage.  Letters to the Editor were written and many opinions of opposition appeared on blog sites.

GFPS PROPOSAL NUMBER THREE

During 2017 the district was successful in bonding $38M to upgrade GFHS Main Campus Classrooms, Parking, Technology Career & Technical Education (CTE) Facilities, Lunch/Dining Areas, Building Entrances and STEM Classrooms. Also, during 2017, the district selected a team of consultants to carry forward with master planning and design.  The team is headed by NE45 Architects of Bozeman, MT, and Bassetti Architects of Seattle, WA.  Local engineering companies support the group.  Cost for design services was not disclosed.

The above noted second master plan proposal was discarded by the school district.  As a result, GFPS has proposed a third architectural proposal that, in many ways, is not unlike the proposals before.  It would place parking on many locations on campus and Kranz Park and have fenced outdoor storage yards, shops, service roads, and delivery trucks centrally located between the existing IA building and Field House.  It would also have one story of new space connecting the Field House to the historic original Main Campus building, thereby eliminating the east/west pedestrian flow through the campus along the Fourth Avenue South corridor.

The following explains the GFPS proposal NUMBER THREE.  It was presented to the Community at GFHS on January 25, 2018.  The district is currently asking for public comment about their proposal.

The District’s third architectural proposal would eliminate the east/west pedestrian flow through the campus along the Fourth Avenue South corridor with new ground floor space between the field house and the original building. 

The design and approval process are ongoing but nearing an end for this third proposal.  The public can review it and make comments at following links:

https://gfps.k12.mt.us/great-falls-high-school-addition-and-renovation/

https://vimeo.com/252550527

https://gfps.k12.mt.us/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/GFHS%20Slide%20Show%20Community%20Mtg%20%281%29.pdf

The conclusion of this process is the next phase of the history and legacy at GFHS. 

Should THE SCHOOL DISTRICT’S PROPOSAL BE THE FINAL SOLUTION?????

YOUR COMMENTS SHOULD BE HEARD HERE AND AT THE DISTRICT.

 By Darrell A. Swanson-GFHS Class of 1965, Architect/Planner, Tax Payer, and Citizen

As most folks know, spring in Montana is unpredictable and we are now officially into spring by a couple of weeks. One aspect of spring in Great Falls that is almost always predictable is the annual Great Falls Public School District levy. The District rarely misses the opportunity come springtime to bemoan the shortage of funds it needs to properly educate the city’s children. Yes, you’ve heard that it is “for the kids” repeatedly. Is it really?

This year the levy request is for $1,349,048, of which our sources tell us that approximately $500,000 is for contractual obligation increases in District health insurance premiums. The District’s levy presentation provides the math for the Health insurance increases as follows:

Cost increase estimates: Contractual Obligations: $1,600,000 Each 1% Health Insurance: $64,000 x 5% = $320,000. (https://gfps.k12.mt.us/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/2018-Operational-Levy-Information.pdf)

If $500,000 is the real number, then have the health insurance premiums increased more than 1%? Probably.

According to the Time.com, Money website – “Preliminary analysis suggests some of the most popular plans could see double-digit premium increases. Health care consulting firm Avalere analyzed initial rate estimates from eight states and found that premiums for “silver” plans (the most popular plans) are rising 18% next year, after a 12% increase this year.”

This isn’t the first time that premiums for District employees have increased, and it will likely not be the last time. In other words, the District has a chronic problem without a solution other than to ask for operational increases every year. When school levies fail, the narrative from the District that the taxpayers are failing the education of our children simply isn’t true and maybe the District administration is the responsible party.

“This isn’t the first time that premiums for District employees have increased, and it will likely not be the last time. In other words, the District has a chronic problem without a solution other than to ask for operational increases every year. When school levies fail, the narrative from the District that the taxpayers are failing the education of our children simply isn’t true and maybe the District administration is the responsible party.”

How can the District’s administrators fail to recognize the fact that Health Insurance premiums will most certainly rise at the time when they are negotiating union contracts? Isn’t that what you call negotiating in bad faith? Does the teacher’s union feel that if the levy fails and several teachers and staff are terminated that the much larger number of teachers and staff will benefit through contractual obligations already incurred?

We should also ask if six-figure salary administrators can afford to pay more for their health insurance premiums. Taxpayers generally receive no help when their premiums go up.

E-City Beat will publish more information concerning the upcoming levy vote, so stayed tuned and most importantly, tell us how you feel.

THE VISIT, THE MIDDLE YEARS, THREE MORE ADDITIONS, THE MONEY, AND THE ARCHITECTS DESIGNS

When in 10^th grade there was a NOTABLE EVENT at Great Falls High School, the City, the State, and the Nation.  On Thursday, September 26, 1963, more than 20,000 people crowded into Memorial Stadium to listen to a speech about conservation by President John F. Kennedy.  I was fortunate to see JFK get off his plane at the Airport and also along his route for his speech at the Memorial Stadium.  That day I left school on the seat of my dirt bike, raced to the Gore Hill trails I help brake in, spun the tire up the hill, peered through the airport chain link fence, and hopped back on the bike to parallel his route to the stadium.  I was too late to sit in the stadium so I listened as I hung out next to the flag while enjoying the then, park-like quadrangle.

This is the fourth in a series of informational articles that focus primarily on the architectural history of Great Falls High School and campus.  The information has been gathered from available records.  Missing information may be confirmed upon further research.  I will be interested in obtaining that information from you if known.

Part Three talked about the evolution of the campus between when built in 1930 to when facilities were constructed during 1997.  During that period there were three major additions and a total window replacement at the original building.  All design teams have been led by talented Great Falls companies.  Construction had primarily been done by local contraction teams.

Part 4 summarizes major construction on the campus from 1997 to when the last major construction was completed in 1998.

The fourth major addition to the original historic structure was the 1998, 50’ x 110’ Wrestling Addition connected to the north elevation of the original Gymnasium. It was designed by local firm, Davidson – Kuhr Architects. The $300,000 cost of construction was a donation from local attorney Zander Blewett and his wife Andy. The donation was conditioned upon the selection of the architectural firm Davidson – Kuhr. Excavation. Concrete work was donated by Robert McIntyre and United Materials of Great Falls. The Wrestling Addition’s designers attempted to incorporate a simplified interpretation of Collegiate Gothic Revival elements of original school, such as the pilaster design and belt-course of the original school.

Remarkably, Great Falls High School, including the first and second additions, has retained its original interior and exterior finishes and detailing with the exception of the later windows replacement to a Kalwall insulated panel system. Oak trim and cabinetry, plaster ceilings and walls terrazzo and hard wood floors, and many original lighting fixtures are in excellent condition after many years dedicated maintenance. Once completed, the ongoing historical window replacement program should restore the exterior of the building. That will be explained in PART 5.

Backtracking to major additions to the GFHS campus, in 1979 the school district built the stand-alone Bison Fieldhouse south of 4th Ave and disconnected from the original building. It was built as a modern sports facility with 3,600-seat basketball arena, Olympic-size swimming pool, classrooms, weight-training room, boys and girls locker rooms, offices, sports training and conditioning rooms, and parking lot. Local architectural firm, R. Terry Johnson Architects, was the architect of record. Philip M. Faccenda (GFHS 1965) joined the firm in 1978 as design architect. The original design called for a brick exterior and a connector to the main campus. Budget was not adequate so both were cut from program.

In 1995, the Great Falls Public Schools commissioned a study which looked at ways to alleviate overcrowding at GFHS as well as make the school handicapped compliant. The study recommended building an addition to house classrooms and the construction of an elevator in the main building to give students access to science laboratory space on the structure’s second and third floors. The classroom addition to Bison Fieldhouse (known as “South Campus”) opened in the summer of 1998.[10][25] The elevator began operation the same year.

To preserve and recognize the school, during 2011 when the school district started considering their next major project, two GFHS alumni and professional architects, Philip M. Faccenda (GFHS 1965) and Darrell Swanson (GFHS 1965) founded the independent nonprofit Great Falls High School Heritage Foundation. During 2013, as the first project of the organization, they volunteered their time to prepare the sixty-page submittal and successfully placed the original building and campus on the National Register of Historic Places.

PARTS 1 to 4 have explained the development past process and construction at the campus. These projects were successfully funded and managed by the school districted. Design teams were headed by established and talented local architects, engineers, and contractors. It was the basic development process that has not changed over the years. As we approach the $38M major expansion at GFHS this year, Part 5 will discuss the later years. It will talk about the next PART of the GFHS legacy.

Please stay tuned.

Summarized by Darrell A. Swanson

GFHS Class of 1965, Architect/Planner, Tax Payer, Citizen

He can be reached at darrells@swansonarchitects.com or 406.599.6910

THE MIDDLE YEARS 1930 – 1997, THREE ADDITIONS, THE MONEY, AND THE ARCHITECT’S DESIGNS

This is the third in a series of informational articles that focus primarily on the architectural history of Great Falls High School and campus. The information has been gathered from available records. Missing information may be confirmed upon further research. I will be interested in obtaining that information from you if known.

In a few cases, such as what I stated in PART TWO, are as I remember. I am interested in any suggested corrections or happy personal tidbits that expand the history.

Another tidbit from me is that I sincerely liked going to school at GFHS for the three years when it was a grade 10 – 12 high school with 3,000 students. Well, that three years is minus one day when asked by my favorite teacher to leave because my shirt was not tucked in. (At least that is the way I remember it). No matter, I was very anxious to return as soon as the next school bell rang because my previous work day started a bit too early (and my dirt bike did not start) when my Dad put a 16-pound sledge hammer in my hand and told me to break a hole in a concrete wall where he needed an opening for a stair. I was easily convinced that school lunch and drafting class was a much better career builder.

Part Two explained the funding, design. and construction process for the original GFHS building and Memorial Stadium through 1930 when they were built. It was designed to serve 1900 students and was constructed for $1.15 million. ($526 per student). It was an impressive build during the start of the depression and greatly helped the regional economy. A talented team of Great Falls architects and civil engineers were hired who then collaborated with a Minneapolis architectural firm to augment the team. Many construction companies and craftsmen were kept busy on the 1 ½ year construction.

Part Three will talk about the evolution of the campus between when built in 1930 to the facilities that were constructed during 1997. During that period there have been three major additions and window replacement to the original building.

“Part Three will talk about the evolution of the campus between when built in 1930 to the facilities that were constructed during 1997. During that period there have been three major additions and window replacement to the original building.”

The first major project began in 1954 when a second floor was added to the southeast corner of the school above the Art, Journalism and Machine Shop classrooms to accommodate the expanded choir, orchestra and band facilities by the local architectural firm of McIver, Hess & Haugsjaa established in 1953 (9). Angus Vaughn McIver, born in Great Falls, MT in1892, was a 1910 graduate of Great Falls High School and the University of Michigan, whose Montana architectural license number was “6” and was issued in 1918, one year after Montana licensing began. William J. Hess, born in 1914, was a graduate of Montana State College earning a B.S. architectural degree in 1937. Knute S. Haugsjaa, born in 1915, was a graduate of North Dakota State College with a B.S. architectural degree in 1939. The second-floor addition was a congruent design and featured the reuse of original parapet caps and crenels from the existing first floor. Construction contracts were awarded in March of 1954 and work was completed later that year at a cost of $110,400. (14)

The second major project was the $215,000 three-story addition designed in 1963 by McIver and Hess Architects. It is located at the east termination of vertical East-West “T” leg adjacent to 20th Street and created classroom space on the first floor for Homemaking, Commercial, and History, on the second floor for the Library, and on the third floor for Chemistry and Biology. The architect’s adherence to original detailing was exacting, well executed and included several of the brick bonds used on the original structure. The addition created a new “Main Entrance” to the school along the originally established east – west axis. (15)

The original windows were a combination of 12/12 and 9/9 wood double-hung sash. The original wood window frames were found to be rotted through, allowing cold air to enter the building. (16) Beginning in 1966 and programmed as a five-year project, the windows were replaced with Kalwall insulated translucent panels and a single aluminum tempered glass operating light. Budget was $100,000. The windows substantially reduced the transparency and natural light to all rooms of the school.

The third addition, designed in 1975 by the local firm of Davidson – Kuhr Architects, is a nondescript 120’ x 100’ two – story independently sited masonry Industrial Arts building located between the southwest side of the school and Memorial Stadium. It is connected to the school via an enclosed sky bridge from the school’s main east – west hallway adjacent to the Auditorium foyer. When built, the building effectively closed the north-south open commons area in the middle of the campus between 2nd Ave South and 5th Ave. South that included flag court, west side of old school building, senior stair, stadium, field house, and south campus.

Part 4 will discuss the years from the fourth major addition to when the last major work on the campus was completed. Please stay tuned.

Summarized by Darrell A. Swanson

GFHS Class of 1965, Architect/Planner, Tax Payer, Citizen He can be reached at darrells@swansonarchitects.com or 406.599.6910

9 National Park Service 10 “Great Falls High School.” Great Falls High School Bison Football. No date. Accessed 2011-05-06.

14 Wilmot, Paul. “1920s Proved to Be Eventful in Great Falls, Around Region.” Great Falls Tribune. April 11, 2010.

15 Wilmot, Paula. “See How You Fared in Our Area History Quiz of the 1930s.” Great Falls Tribune. May 9, 2010. 16″Find Giant Powder Hidden in Manhole.” Associated Press. August 6, 1929.

24 Prep Notebook.” Great Falls Tribune. April 15, 2003. 25 Les Johnson o/b/o Amanda Johnson v. Great Falls Public Schools. Final Order. HRC Case No. 9504007138. Human Rights Commission of the State of Montana. September 10, 1998, p. 5-6. Accessed 2011-05-06.

This is the second in a series of informational articles that will focus primarily on the architectural history of Great Falls High School.  The information has been gathered from available records. 

In a few cases, such as what I stated in PART ONE about the school’s student population in 1965 when I graduated, is as I remember and lived it.  I am interested in any suggested corrections or happy personal tidbits that expand the history.  One of many happy tidbits in my case, I enjoyed the first (of three) shifts best, thereby freeing my time at noon each day for work and my chosen sport, dirt bikes.  Some may remember my 20^th street wheelies as I celebrated another day of freedom after my last class.  

In 1927, the Great Falls Public School system was unsuccessful in gaining voter approval to issue bonds to build a new high school, but a second try in 1928 was approved.  Construction began on the landmark $1 million School in 1928 and was completed on July 21, 1930 at a final cost of $1.15 million.  The original Great Falls High School campus is located on four city blocks between 2^nd and 4^th Avenues South and between 18^th and 20^th Streets South to the East of the Original Townsite of the expanding City of Great Falls.

The design of the new Great Falls High School was a collaborative effort by the Great Falls architectural firm of George W. Bird and Johannes Van Teylingen and the Minneapolis, Minnesota firm of Ernest Croft and Francis C. Boerner.  Van Teylingen was one of the most prominent architects in Montana at the time and had designed the Masonic Temple in Great Falls, the Great Falls Civic Center and Turner Hall on the campus of the University of Montana.  George W. Bird was by training a civil engineer and was hired as the first City Engineer of Great Falls by Mayor Paris Gibson at the suggestion of James Hill to lay out the new city’s streets, parks and boulevards.

George W. Bird was born on February 4, 1861 and was educated in Philadelphia.  He arrived at the confluence of the Missouri and Sun rivers by stage coach in 1882.  Eventually, Bird associated himself with Jonannes Van Teylingen, a young native Hollander.  The partnership produced such Great Falls buildings as the Emerson and Washington schools, the original Roosevelt School, the Largent School which was originally designed as a junior high, and the Christian, St John’s Lutheran, and First Baptist churches, as well as many other projects. ⁽²⁾  

Van Teylingen and Bird’s association on Great Falls High School was Bird’s last commission and after its completion he retired from active practice at the age of 69.  He lived to the age of 100 and passed away in Great Falls, the city to which he was instrumental in giving birth. 

Ernest B. Croft (1889 – 1959), of Croft and Boerner Architects, Minneapolis, Minnesota, was born November 19, 1889 in Herman, Minnesota and practiced with Francis C. Boerner (1989 – 1937), the firm’s business manager, from 1916 to 1920. ⁽³⁾  Croft, a graduate of the University of Minnesota in 1911, was affiliated with several firms and spent 3 years in New York City before partnering with fellow University of Minnesota graduate Boerner in 1916. ⁽⁴⁾  The firm was widely respected having designed the Minneapolis Municipal Auditorium and particularly noted for their high school design experience with many projects across Minnesota and Iowa.  It is believed that Croft’s Elk River Senior High School, Elk River, Minnesota, and Great Falls High School, both completed in 1930 were outstanding examples of an evolution in secondary school design by the firm. 

The construction of the building generated strong debate over whether the high school’s name should be changed, with former students asking that the school’s name be changed to “Charles M. Russell High School” after local artist Charles M. Russell, while businessmen in the city wanted the name to be “James J. Hill High School”, the chief executive of the Great Northern Railroad and friend of Paris Gibson.

Another debate erupted over the type of brick to be used in the building.  The architects, primarily the consulting architectural firm of Croft and Boerner, had specified that the exterior brick be a dark red; however, some business members of the school board wanted to use a lighter local brick.  Investigative trips with several school board members to Western Clay Manufacturing in Helena, Montana ⁽¹⁶⁾ and Riddell & Watts brickyard in Missoula, Montana ⁽¹⁷⁾ were promoted by the architects and a successful compromise to use dark imported brick for the exterior and light, locally-made bricks for the interior.  The locally made bricks were twice the price of the imported brick.

The final cost of the building when completed on July 21, 1930 was $1.15 million and opened in the Fall of 1930 with 1,760 students, just under the 1,800 it was designed to accommodate.  The three-story school reflects the symmetrical classic T-shape, 515’ North-South and 152’ East-West. 

Defining architectural elements such as the typically crenelated parapets, Gothic arch window and door openings, tracery windows and tower are evidenced in the Great Falls High School design.  The brick work incorporates five different bond patterns and the extensive use of cut sandstone details produced a structure of unmatched beauty and utility. 

The dark red brick building exhibits common exterior Collegiate Gothic detailing including formed-in-place concrete foundation, a low rise concrete base, a sandstone water table, contrasting sandstone window sills, soldier course window headers at the first floor, a sandstone belt course at the second floor window sill with decorative highly articulated brick continuous bracket, soldier course window headers, sandstone third floor window sills and continuous sandstone headers at each of the stepped-out pilaster flanked bays.  The walls invoke the Gothic style with a crenelated parapet with terra cotta caps.  The crenels are terra cotta and typically spaced at two per bay.

The central corridor interior plan with classrooms opening on to generous hallways was designed to allow maximum fenestration for the classrooms and incorporates a Gothic detailed main entrance at the west elevation forming the top of the “T” and facing the Stadium.  The formal symmetry is further evidenced by the main entrance’s position being centered on the East – West axis of Third Avenue South and the flag pole’s placement at the intersection of the East – West axis and the North – South axis of Nineteenth Street.  Twin elaborate angled staircases are located at the intersecting north-south and east west hallways adjacent to the main entrance and secondary staircases are located at the north and south ends of the main hallway.

The strict orientation of the site plan and building location can most likely be credited to G.W. Bird.  The building is anchored on the North by the Gymnasium and on the South by an elaborate Theatre / Auditorium

The Gymnasium contains two basement locker rooms and a hardwood basketball court surrounded by mezzanine seating that accommodates 1,200 spectators.  At the same time, Memorial Stadium, honoring those who fought and served in World War I, was constructed featuring concrete bleachers on the east side of the football field and clad in the same dark red brick on the upper west elevation of the seating.

Two, two-story 256 square foot structures flank both ends of the bleacher seating with the northeast structure connected to the locker room level of the gymnasium by an underground tunnel.  In 1957, a reinforced concrete grandstand that included a press box, concession area and restrooms was added at the west side of the stadium.

The construction of the Gymnasium and stadium proved timely, since in 1930 the Montana Supreme Court ruled in McNair v School District no. 1 of Cascade County that a gymnasium was a “necessary and essential part of a school plant” which was lacking in the original 1896 Great Falls High School by William White. ⁽¹³⁾

Great Falls High School is anchored on the south by an exquisitely designed Auditorium / Theatre seating 900 on the main level and 300 on the balcony level. The Theatre is accessed from a generous foyer with a ticket booth which is centered on the main hallway of the transverse portion of the formal “T”.   The Theatre is replete with ornate plaster work including perforated plaster grilles and original hanging light fixtures.  Proscenium, stage and fourth wall are fine examples of period theatre design.  The exterior entrance to the theatre is the second most distinctive entry to the school, displaying a shallow sandstone portico with a crenelated parapet and center arch.  The entrance is approached by a broad 90-degree stairway that accesses four centered doors with an arched three light transom and two side doors reinforcing the architect’s intent that the school was to be community centric. The entrance leads to a fore-lobby and then to the foyer of the theatre. 

An interior stair tower with sandstone arched top windows on the north and west sides, indented upper story masonry corners with chamfered sandstone transition blocks similar to the west main entrance tower.  The indented exterior wall from the water table to the parapet incorporates a sandstone and brick heraldic panel above the windows in a chequy pattern signifying “Constancy”.  The Chequy panels above single arched top windows also occur at northeast and north west entrances / stair towers to the gymnasium along with upper floor single arched top windows, indented upper floor wall corners and chamfered sandstone transition blocks.

The original campus and building remains a much revered historic icon in the community.  Since its inception, GFHS has evolved with many added facilities.  Please stay tuned.

^2.  “Early Day Architects in Great Falls”, anonymous, Great Falls Public Library.

^3.  “Croft, Ernest B.”, Who’s Who In Minnesota, 1941.

^4.   “Boerner, Francis C.”, Obit, NW Architect, v.1 #3, January 1937,p.15. (Board of Registration)

^13. “McNair v. School District No. 1 of Cascade County (Mont.)”, 87 Mont. 423, 288 P. 188 (1930). 

^16. Western Clay Manufacturing Company, “Archie Bray Foundation I History”,   http://www.archiebray.org/about_us/abf_history.html

^17. Riddell & Watts brickyard, “Historic Missoula – Missoula Brick”,   http://historicmissoula.org/History/BuildingMaterials/MissoulaBrick/ 

Summarized by Darrell A. Swanson

GFHS Class of 1965, Architect/Planner, Tax Payer, Citizen

He can be reached at darrells@swansonarchitects.com or 406.599.6910