Jefferson County school district officials and parents of Bear Creek juniors are asking for help from the public to find graphing calculators, after a fire closed the school today.
Juniors will take the ACT test tomorrow, but don’t have access to Bear Creek to retrieve the calculators.
Testing has been moved to Green Mountain High School, while fire cleanup continues at Bear Creek.
The fire broke out around noon, in the “small” gymnasium on the campus at 3490 S. Kipling St., Lakewood, said Marlene Desmond, a spokeswoman with the Jefferson County School District.
There were no reports of injuries.
Bear Creek principal Phyllis Emerich said, “We have received many phone calls from students who are panicking because they can’t get their calculators from the school.”
Donated calculators can be dropped off at the Jeffco Public Schools Education Center at 1829 Denver West Drive, in Golden, until 6:30 p.m. tonight or at Green Mountain High School, which is 13175 Green Mountain Drive, between 6:30 and 7:30 a.m.
The recommended model – Texas Instruments Scientific T183 – costs about a hundred dollars, according to school officials.
There is no school at Bear Creek tomorrow, but the ACT tests for juniors are mandated by the state.
The test will begin at 7:30 a.m. Bear Creek juniors who usually ride the bus will be picked up and taken to Green Mountain High School; however transportation after the test will not be provided.
The test is expected to end at approximately 11:45 a.m., the district said.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com
