By Nicole Falco
The building-improvement plan adopted by the Board of Education two years ago came to fruition over the summer.
Paid for with an $8.5 million bond approved by voters by a margin of almost 2-to-1 in October 2001 as well as approximately $1.5 million in reserve funds, the plan called for expansion in the Shaw Avenue and Forest Road schools and the conversion of the district's administration offices to a kindergarten center for the Clear Stream Avenue School.
Among other things, the additional and recaptured space means that art and music teachers can have their own classrooms instead of wheeling carts from room to room or teaching in the cafeteria, and the district can prepare for the enrollment growth it anticipates. Also, storage space, which tends to fill up fast, was increased.
"We did a lot of great things here," Shaw Avenue principal Henry Mazer said as he led the Herald on a tour of the school's new wing.
As he walked, Mazer pointed out two new classrooms, the new library/media center and computer lab.
"I love my new classroom -- what's not to like?" said Rosemary Decker-Lawson, a fifth- and sixth-grade teacher at Shaw. "The kids love it. They enjoy coming to school because the conditions are so wonderful."
The former library and computer lab were converted into classrooms, and a second-floor addition was built for the school's guidance office, which freed up the former office for a classroom. The second-floor addition also includes a small conference room. The school's auditorium is being renovated and, when completed, it will have carpeting, new lighting, a state-of-the-art sound system and more. Shaw's addition was built in part of the school's interior courtyard.
"These are significant changes that have really been designed to make instruction more effective and to provide space for our teachers to really apply their craft," Mazer said.
Like Shaw Avenue, Forest Road students are also enjoying a new library/media center, a computer lab, four new classrooms and a refurbished playground. The addition allowed the school to convert the former library and computer room into classrooms. "We feel like we are living in the lap of luxury," said Carol Kingsley, Forest Road principal.
Students also said they appreciated the changes. "I like the new smell," said Lindsey Young, a Forest Road fourth-grader. "I think [the library] is really pretty."
Young's classmate Jennifer Yi added, "It's much better than the other one," and she marveled at how the lights turn on automatically in her classroom -- one of the new classrooms -- when the teacher opens the door.
And according to Helin Choi, another Forest Road fourth-grader, the new computer lab is "much bigger" and students have more room to sit and walk around.
At Clear Stream, three classrooms were made available when the three kindergarten classes were moved to their own nearby facility. The Clear Stream Avenue School annex, or kindergarten learning center, is located on Washington Avenue, the former the site of the district's administration office. The administration office is now at 175 North Central Ave.
"They still have all the things that the kids at the main building have, and it opened up three more classrooms in Clear Stream, where we were getting crowded," said Diana Haanraadts, assistant principal. "First, second and fourth grade now have four sections each [instead of three], with 20 to 22 kids per section. Last year's first grade had 30 in each classroom. Now they have 20 to 22. That's a big difference."
At the Clear Stream annex, each classroom is equipped with its own bathroom and kitchen area. The students' day begins 20 minutes earlier than at the main building to allow adequate time for parents with children in both buildings to get them to school on time. Students' lunches are delivered daily, and the students can take advantage of the district's breakfast program just as they would if they attended class in the main building. The art, music and phys. ed. teachers travel from Clear Stream to the annex, as does the school librarian.
"So far, things seem to be going very nicely," said Mela Golfo, a Clear Stream kindergarten teacher. "Maybe the children are a little more able to be 5-year-olds."
