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Franklin School Transition Going Well

The move to a new building is going smoother than expected for some Moline children and their teachers displaced by a fire. That's the opinion of Moline Superintendent Lanty McGuire, two days after transferring 270 students and 20 staff from Franklin Elementary to the former WIU building on 60th Street. 

But he says it may take some time to arrange transportation for all the children. 

"Right now we're trying to work through those students who used to walk to school. We're busing them but it's a lot more than we anticipated. We're not a busing district so this is new to a lot of us. "

McGuire says the "new" building has more than enough classrooms, and there's space for phys-ed, but not with the large, high ceilinged gym they're used to. 

As for Franklin, cleanup continues at the 65 year old school. 

"We projected it would take this whole school year. I think every time I talk to them and they tell me some of the things they have to work through, it could very well be through the end of the school year that we're at the WIU building."

He's very thankful for the many offers of help, and for the patience of Franklin parents. He's also grateful for the university and new owner Joseph Lemon who helped the district find a new site, and move in, all while the WIU property was being sold. Lemon officially bought the property on Monday.  

A native of Detroit, Herb Trix began his radio career as a country-western disc jockey in Roswell, New Mexico (“KRSY, your superkicker in the Pecos Valley”), in 1978. After a stint at an oldies station in Topeka, Kansas (imagine getting paid to play “Louie Louie” and “Great Balls of Fire”), he wormed his way into news, first in Topeka, and then in Freeport Illinois.