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Gary Thomas: keeping an eye out for Lewiston's kids By
Joseph Dougherty Indeed, the former combination junior high-elementary school now houses grades kindergarten through 5. Being as old as it is, it still requires yearly asbestos inspections, said Gary Thomas, the school's principal. "Whenever carpet is replaced, they call in the team," he said. The team he refers to is an asbestos cleanup/inspection crew that takes care that none of the carcinogen escapes into the air. Inspections are a regular thing at Lewiston Elementary, Thomas said. State risk-management inspectors and the Cache County Fire inspector are annual visitors to the school. Government employees aren't the only ones keeping an eye on the students at Lewiston Elementary. Thomas has 28 certified teachers and 22 classified staff -- aides, cooks, custodians and office workers looking out for the well-being of the school's 553 pupils. When Thomas started at Lewiston four years ago, there were 568. He said that number has declined every year except for this one. But of course in Lewiston, a city of about 1,600 people, one family moving in or out can make a difference in enrollment. Because of the state Legislature's budget cuts, even Lewiston Elementary was affected. The cut translated to the dismissal of a teacher last year. Thomas said the difference of one teacher affects more than just his school's budget. "When I lose one teacher, I have to look at grade levels," he says. Class sizes increase as fewer teachers are spread among more students. Even though school counselors visited the school about one and one-half days each week, the budget cut caused them to stop coming as frequently, Thomas says. "Kids today deal with things I never had to deal with," he said. Sometimes, parents driving by Lewiston Elementary School will see two children hauling off another child to the depths of the playground. The captive child's hands seem to be bound behind him. The immediately concerned parent calls Thomas, and he's out on the playground as fast as he can get there. The word comes back from outside. It's OK. They were playing cops and robbers. When Thomas steps outside during an afternoon recess break, he's greeted with cheers of "Mr. Thomas!" from the students. Thomas was expecting it. He was also expecting the opportunity that now lands in his arms: At recess, they make me kick the ball," he says. That's exactly what he did. Every time the football or soccer ball soared into the air, the second graders on the playground let out a unified, "Whooooaaaahh." Bronson Fife, one of the second graders on the playground and future Army hopeful, said he likes when Thomas visits during recess because "he kicks good." Thomas said he wants parents and teachers to feel welcome at Lewiston Elementary. "If the teachers are happy, the kids will be happy," he says. To help teachers feel that way, Thomas says he "kicks them out" for a day off on their birthdays while he teaches their classes.
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