MEXICO — Bonnie Child, Mexico representative on the RSU 10 Board of Directors, have her report to the Select Board on Nov. 19.

“So we’re trying to get kids back in school because we know that remote doesn’t work. We were hoping to get 7th and 8th grade up to the high school before Thanksgiving, but it’s not looking that way because they haven’t got things ready in that area, so it’ll be after that at a date to be determined. The 5th grade is still going to RES and it’s looking like they’re going to start Tuesday, Dec. 3rd, and the 6th grade is going to be going up to our building up here (beside Mexico Rec Center), also at a date to be determined.”

Select Board member Peter Merrill said, “As a parent of two that are home with their little laptops, is the school district going to come up with a method of kinda weening these kids away from the refrigerator door? Because all these that are home, every 10 minutes with the refrigerator.”

On Oct. 8, the Mountain Valley Middle School, which housed 366 students in grades 5 to 8, abruptly closed its doors when an air quality test conducted by an industrial hygienist deemed the school is no longer a safe and healthy place to work and learn.

Town manager Raquel Welch-Day said regarding the space in the building for the 6th graders, “It’s looking like the Dept. of Education is going to invest about $200,000 into our building to make it ready for the school, which is fantastic for us. Because whether we keep it, because we have a police station and other things going on when the building is upgraded, or if we sell it, it’s worth a heck of a lot more to sell.”

She added that district is paying rent on top of the investment into the building. “I’m working with the lawyer right now to get the lease done.”

Construction of the $92 million Mountain Valley Community School on Highland Avenue in Mexico is underway and is expected to open in early 2026. It will serve more than 1,000 students in prekindergarten through eighth grade, replacing the middle school, Meroby Elementary school at 21 Cross St. in Mexico and Rumford Elementary School at 121 Lincoln Ave.