As students and staff returned to the building after summer break, improvements to the infrastructure, new paint, and a new field awaited them.
Over the summer, the school made improvements for ADA accessibility, reconstructed some of the bathrooms, made the auditorium more accessible, and gave almost all surfaces a new paint job.
One of the most visible improvements made to the school is the new paint in the halls, on doors and in stairwells. Students have varying opinions on whether the new paint has livened up the school. “Although I do appreciate the new paint in our school, there are still many issues such as mold that are just being covered up with paint but not actually being fixed. Also, the pink stairwell is a fun addition but the stairs and metal bars are just as dirty as when we ended school last year. The paint may be brand new and help make the school look cleaner but it doesn’t take away from the foundational issues our school has,” senior Yana Kohli said.
When walking around the school’s campus now, students can find a variety of ADA-focused improvements. At the front entrance of the school, there is a new ramp with railings, and the auditorium was changed to accommodate more ADA-accessible seating. The seating in the auditorium was changed to accommodate 12 wheelchair-friendly spaces and removed 130 standard seats. “I am very happy to see the results of our [SGA’s] advocacy and that the school is more accessible,” senior and SGA member Madeline Eig said.
The improvements that have garnered the most attention from students have been the bathroom changes on the first and second floors by the main stairwell students enter through. For the first weeks of school, the hallways in these areas were closed to accommodate the end of the bathroom construction, which served as inconvenience to those who park in the lower lot and get dropped off by the lower pillars. However, the hallways opened up on Wednesday, Sept. 15, with the first floor bathrooms opening shortly after. The bathrooms on the second floor remain closed.
The new bathrooms are different from any other bathrooms in the school, forgoing the typical male-female separate rooms with stalls and sinks. The new bathrooms are gender-neutral, with multiple separate rooms open to everyone, and sinks separately placed outside in the hallway.
Another major change is the new turf field in the stadium. The previous turf had been in place for 11 years, which meant this school was due for an upgrade. According to Athletic Director Al Lightsey, the new turf is made of more organic material than the former field. The new turf contains sand, coconut husk and almond husk, a change from the black rubber pellets that the field previously contained. The new turf is cooler after a hot day and is softer, Lightsey said.
This set of improvements is just the start for the school, with a Phase 2 of scheduled changes set for next summer. Those changes are more focused on entrances and exits, as well as reconfiguring the bus loop and lack of ADA-friendly parking.
