The Bridgeport Exempted Village School District has taken the first step in a project that will change the face of the district and promises to benefit the lives of thousands in the surrounding communities.
Thanks to funding from a state grant, in the next two and a half years a proposed 28,500-square-foot addition will be erected in front of Bridgeport Elementary School. Superintendent Brent Ripley said this new facility will enable the district to serve as a hub for a wide variety of services.
“This is big and will impact generations of people,” Ripley said.
He said this facility could allow the district to expand College Credit Plus for students and community members, as well as offer additional online learning, a workforce training area, and a science, technology, engineering, arts and math classroom.
Ripley said Ohio Hills Health Services could bring in doctor and dental services for students and families, the Belmont County Health Department may provide help in providing services at a satellite location, and the OhioRISE (Resilience through Integrated Systems and Excellence) Medicaid managed care program for children and youth with complex behavioral health and multisystem needs could assist by connecting parents with resources. Southeast Health Services has also teamed up with the district to offer mental health supports on site.
The Brookside Fire Department might use the site to train emergency medical technicians and paramedics.
Ripley said new or different programs may be added as the planning process unfolds. He noted the district wants to create a one stop location for families and students.
The district sought out and gained grant funding to the tune of $13,834,879 through the Appalachian Community Innovation Centers Grant Project. Ripley said the initiative began simply, when district administrators attended an Ohio School Boards Association conference this past November and heard about how another district had built similar facilities to serve its communities. Ripley later learned of the available funding through the visit of a personal colleague in January.
Ripley said several factors in the area influenced the state’s decision to award this grant. He noted many economic opportunities and services were lacking.
“We don’t have a doctor’s office here in Bridgeport. We don’t have a dentist’s office here in Bridgeport,” he said.
Ripley said considering the population of surrounding communities and accessibility via public transportation, an estimated 20,000 lives could be impacted as people made use of the new facility. He said it is difficult to access public transportation beyond the Ohio Valley Mall on Interstate 70.
“I think that’s what set us apart,” he said. “We want to reverse the strongholds of poverty and continue to build the Bridgeport School District into a leader in the Ohio Valley. This grant will give us the physical building and money to set a plan into action which we believe will be one that is adored throughout the state.”
He said anyone in the public from Bridgeport and beyond will be able to make use of the evening services and resources. This schedule will be part of the planning that the district will be doing as the project moves forward.
Curriculum Director Leslie Kosanovic and Technology Director Lisa Clark said working together on this application called for some thought in how the district could benefit the area through education, health care and workforce development.
“What are our needs? What opportunities do we want to offer our students? What is the need in our community?” Clark said, recalling brainstorming sessions.
“Bottom line, it’s increased opportunities for students,” Kosanovic said. “It also gives additional opportunities and support to our community.”
Kosanovic said the facility would have a wide variety of uses for community service entities.
“It’s going to build on what we’ve already continued to support, and build forward,” she said. “It’s going to be some flexible space.”
She and Clark said some possibilities include exercise training after school hours, a walking track for use in the evenings and a childcare wing for school employees. Ripley said the site would be ideal for organizations such as Rotary clubs or the NAACP to hold their meetings, which students might attend and further their educations.
“We’re trying to help students. We’re trying to help our community members just to advance and sustain lives,” Ripley said.
Ripley said the district received letters of support from other community partners including Belmont College, Ohio Means Jobs, the Belmont County Department of Job and Family Services, Ohio Hills Health Services, the Bridgeport Rotary, the Belmont County NAACP, Southeast Health Services, OhioRISE, the Brookside Fire Department and Experience Church.
“I truly see additional partnerships forming from the rise of our new facility. We are going to selflessly serve and purposefully plan for our community making our campus one that supports a family mentality, encouragement, grit and most importantly, hope,” Ripley said.
The district formed a planning committee that began the application process in February and submitted the proposal on March 28.
“As this was a team effort like everything else in our school district we must pay forward our thank to the planning committee,” he said.
The committee is made up of Ripley, board of education members Kori Rosnick, Don Cash, Karrie Puskas, Ryan Kreiter, and Patrick McConnaughy, treasurer Eric Meininger, Clark and Kosanovic, guidance counselor Vicki Falcone, past superintendent and past school board member Roger Stewart, Brookside mayor Rich Kurner, Allan Ketzell Jr. of the Brookside fire department, and Bridgeport graduate and grant writer Angela Sommer.
The project must be completed by Dec. 31, 2026.
Ripley said the next step will be meeting with the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission to begin the planning phase. Eventually the district will schedule a groundbreaking. Ripley said the district will continue to call on the original planning committee for input as the dream takes shape.
“We want those voices that were part of this planning process to be the ones to carry the project through,” he said.
Ripley said new information will be released through the Bridgeport app. Ripley thanks school employees, parents and students in advance for their cooperation during the project, as construction goes on during and after school.
“It’s going to cause some changes to be made and everything will be communicated with families and students. Our goal is to continue to be open, honest and transparent as we move forward. All true and factual information will be shared through our app and not social media platforms” he said.
“It’s going to be a two-and-a-half-year process, and we are going to enjoy every minute of this together, and everything that parents need to know, and students need to know we will communicate to them,” Ripley said. “We want to keep people updated with true and factual information.”
Ripley, Kosanovic and Clark closed with the district motto: “And as always, Go Dogs!”
Anyone with questions may call the district office at 740-635-1713 or brent.ripley@bridgeportschools.net.
