Over this past summer and into the school year, Quality Roofing has been working on replacing the roof of the school. This is a project that started Monday, June 6 and is now not expected to be finished until mid-September.

According to USD 232 director of facilities Steve Deghand, the roofing project was originally supposed to be finished by Wednesday Aug. 10.

Eric Adams, the estimator project manager for Quality Roofing, blames the weather for many of their troubles.

“If there had been no weather all summer we would’ve been pretty close to the deadline,” he said

Deghand is frustrated with the slow progress the project is making, and also names one of the culprits as the enormous amount of rainfall Shawnee has had recently.

“Had we had a month of dry weather, and all this was done, everything would have been complete … [the leaks]

would’ve been reduced by a bunch,” Deghand said. “The weather hasn’t cooperated but it’s still no excuse.”

It’s not just the timeline that’s been affected by the weather; students and teachers alike are experiencing the effects of the leaks the rain has caused.

According to technology teacher Helga Brown, one morning in June she arrived to find the ceiling collapsed and an inch and a half of standing water in her room. In total, Brown lost five computers and 10 monitors due to water damage and debris.

“It was very inconveniencing because I came out several times to work in my room and had to leave, like I actually wanted to get some stuff done … So that was pretty frustrating,” Brown said.

Brown describes the Quality Roofing’s name as “ironic” considering how much “damage and inconvenience” they

have caused in her room.

Brown’s computers were replaced by Quality Roofing, who paid around $30,000 before school started. Now, Brown has another three leaks in her room and has two work desks that can’t be used when it’s raining.

“I wish they would go ahead and fix it, but I’m worried that rushing them will make so the problem is only fixed for a few weeks and then comes back,” Brown said.

Sophomore Lauren Rothgeb has also experienced the situation firsthand, with a ceiling leak right in front of her locker.

“[The leaks] are really annoying … I am unable to get to my locker without being dripped on and there is a trashcan right in front of my locker at all times,” Rothgeb said.

Many other places in the building have been affected by the rain. The library has had significant water damage and numerous spots in the hallways and classrooms have had leaks of varying degrees of severance.

Fortunately, the rain is supposed to die off soon so work can get started again and the project can be completed. The roof will have a 20 year warranty, hopefully reducing the amount of problems in the near future.

“The ultimate endgoal is to have a great roofing system,” Deghand said.