It was over three years ago that residents of the Mineola School District approved a bond referendum for $25.7 million. A major part of that referendum was the construction of a new school on Willis Avenue to be used for pre-kindergarten and kindergarten. Now, the community is less than a month away from seeing the new school in use.

The Willis Avenue School is expected to be ready for the opening of the school year, marking the first time in over 15 years a school on the site will be in operation. Also, the school's opening will mark an historic occasion in the history of the district since all of the pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students will be schooled together in the early childhood education center.

Opening this school is a significant event for the entire school district. As Superintendent of Schools for the Mineola School District Dr. Lorenzo Licopoli said, there isn't an aspect of the district that isn't going to change as a result of the school opening.

Although the new school will service all pre-kindergarten and kindergarten classes, its presence will also change the way in which instruction will be delivered in the district, namely the implementation of a new full-day kindergarten program.

The district has hired director of early childhood education Deborah Shaw as the administrator for the Willis Avenue School. "It's definitely exciting. You just try to keep everything going to make sure we're on track. The teachers are all anxious and looking forward to getting in and the parents that I've spoken to are all anxious and looking forward to getting in. I think it's going to be terrific," she said.

The building will also house the central administration offices, which are currently located in Mineola Middle School.

Those driving by the new Willis Avenue School may have noticed that there is still debris surrounding the school as the time winds down before its opening. However, Dr. Licopoli said to expect some change in the exterior of the building. "In the next two weeks, you're going to see some significant improvements in terms of the visibility of Willis from the road," he said on Thursday evening's board of education meeting.

There are still some issues that have to be ironed out before the Willis Avenue School can open. One issue is a plan has to be set with regard to the traffic flow around the building. Dr. Licopoli has been meeting with Mineola Mayor Jack M. Martins so that a plan can be formulated that is safe.

"The village has been working well with us in terms of trying to accommodate our needs and ensuring safe access and departure points from the building," Dr. Licopoli said.

Dr. Licopoli said the district is on schedule and in some respects, ahead of schedule.

The district will hold a pre-kindergarten and kindergarten orientation. The orientation for pre-kindergarten students will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 26. The buses will pick up the morning students according to their morning runs and bring them into the school. The morning students will be getting to the school at 9:15 a.m. Then, pre-kindergarten students who will be attending in the afternoon will be getting to the school at 12:45 p.m. Buses will also be picking up the afternoon students and taking them home.

Orientation for kindergarten students will be held on Wednesday, Aug. 27. Although the kindergarten students will be full-day students, some of the kindergarten students will be coming in to the school in the morning and some in the afternoon for the orientation.

Also, on Aug. 26, the school will be open at 7 p.m. for anyone who has to miss the daytime orientation or if a parent would like another opportunity to see the school.