Great Falls Public Schools (GFPS) held a meeting for parents to update them on Lincoln Elementary School after devastating winds tore off the roof and to outline what to expect for staff and students moving forward.
Watch the video here:
"Update is starting Wednesday morning at 10:00 over at Lincoln Elementary. Grades K through three will be returning to school. It's super exciting that we were able to work with the City of Great Falls and getting occupancy back," said GFPS Executive Director of Student Achievement Lance Boyd said.
Lance Boyd said families will go to Lincoln Elementary Wednesday for an orientation with students.
"Really taking time to go through and explain to them the why we had to make the changes. The difficulty with the roof. The things that will happen moving forward," Boyd said.
For fourth graders, Boyd said a bus route will be in place.
"In the morning at 8:00, we'll have a bus, that will pull up its bus number 57. It'll pull up. Students in grades four will load that bus. And then they will be driven over to Lewis and Clark Elementary School. They'll get off that bus. They'll do school during the day, and then they'll get back on the bus in the afternoon, and they'll return back to Lincoln," Boyd said.
Great Falls resident and parent Francine Palmer said the meeting was very helpful.
"I've just been really impressed with how the school totally got in there and was able to pull this plan together. I actually thought we wouldn't be in school till next week," Palmer said.
Palmer, who has a sixth grader attending Paris Gibson, a fourth grader at Lewis and Clark, and a first grader at Lincoln, said the bus service was a significant relief.
"It's going to be an interesting dynamic of getting everybody to everywhere. I'm grateful they have the bus system. That was one thing I was concerned about. We are close enough for my sixth grader to get to Paris. But the Lewis and Clark one was going to be a little dicey. So I'm really grateful that the bus is being offered. That's going to be huge for us," Palmer said.
GFPS said for fifth graders and sixth graders since Lincoln is close to Paris Gibson there is no busing yet at this time. No school days will be made up. Kids will be at Paris Gibson and Lewis and Clark for the remainder of the year.
(MARCH 10, 2026) Great Falls Public Schools officials have announced the schedule for Lincoln Elementary School students to return to class after the school sustained heavy damage from a wind storm on Sunday.
K-3rd grade students will return to school at Lincoln at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, March 11. Please plan on dropping off students at around 9:45 a.m. All grades will be dropped off on the lower (north) playground. Parents and families are welcome to come inside to see the classrooms and look at the building, as the south wing will be completely closed up.
School officials said that the Cascade City-County Health Department and the Montana Department of Environmental Quality will continue to monitor air quality in the school.
4th grade students will return to class at Lewis & Clark Elementary School at 10 a.m. on Thursday, March 12.
5th and 6th grade students will return to class at Paris Gibson Education Center at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 12.
There will be meetings for parents/caregivers at Paris Gibson Education Center on Tuesday, March 10, at the following times:
- K-3 grade: 4:30pm to 5pm
- 5-6 grade: 5pm to 5:30pm
- 4th grade: 5:30pm to 6pm
We will update you as we get more information.
