Board member Pam Sherman-Sheffield wants the seventh- and eighth-graders in the Tri-City area out of Cumberland High School when classes for the 2004-05 school year begin.

During a meeting Thursday, the Harlan County School Board unanimously approved a bid of $1,179,000 from McKnight and Associates of London to expand the cafeteria and build six classrooms, two stairwells and an elevator at Cumberland Elementary School.

William Richardson of Richardson Associates Architects told the board that seven contractors submitted bids on the Cumberland Elementary School project with none exceeding the $1.3 million budgeted for the facility. The bid from McKnight was the lowest received by the board.

"I recommend this to the board and let us get started," he said.

Superintendent Tim Saylor and Richardson praised previous school work completed by McKnight.

"They are chomping at the bit and ready to go," Saylor said.

The board approved the bid, but not before Sheffield, the representative of the Tri-Cities, made it clear that she wanted the project completed by the time school begins on Aug. 9.

Sheffield said "it is imperative" that the seventh- and eighth-graders are moved from the high school to the expanded elementary school by the beginning of the school year.

"They are on the third floor at Cumberland High School, packed in like sardines," she said.

Sheffield requested that employees of the district's maintenance office monitor the work at the school at least once a week.

Richardson assured Sheffield that the paperwork on the project would begin immediately.

Seventh- and eighth-graders were moved to Cumberland High School after the 2001 school year when the board closed Cumberland Middle School and two other schools due to declining enrollment throughout the district.

Cumberland Elementary School has approximately 530 students enrolled in kindergarten through the sixth grade. Adding the seventh and eighth grades next year would mean an additional 160 students, making Cumberland Elementary School the largest in the county district.

Cumberland High School had 445 students enrolled in grades 7-12 as of Oct. 14, according to statistics from the county school district.

In other action, the board:

n selected Gary Farmer as chairman and Arlene Brown as vice-chairman by 4-0 votes with one abstention for each. Farmer and Brown held the same positions with the board in 2003;

-- delayed a decision until next month on the name, mascot and colors of the new central high school for the county;

-- changed the regular meeting date to the second Monday of each month;

-- accepted a bid of $20,034.20 from Bobcat of Knoxville for a skid steer;

-- accepted a bid for five surplus vehicles;

-- accepted a bid for a trailer at Cumberland High School;

-- approved payment of claims in the aggregate amount of $478,336.24;

-- approved workers' compensation self-insurance;

-- approved the Project Graduation/Prom Program grant application;

-- approved a trip by Rosspoint Elementary School students to New York City;

-- approved revising BG-1 to reflect actual cost of floor covering;

-- approved the district FRYSC FY05 continuation grants;

-- approved the countywide athletic director job description;

-- approved substitute teachers (Rank 4 and 5) for 2003-04

-- approved Title 4 assurance of student discipline records.