The hallways, bathrooms and technology status of Bob Jones are a sight for sore eyes and have been for quite some time. And that is why, for the benefit of the students and the staff, a two year renovation is going to take place throughout the whole campus. All the problems that you have been suffering with will be improved or completely changed with the $20.5 million Bob Jones was given last semester.
But what should go first? What updates should be made before any other alterations? The students have spoken when asked what should be top priority during this construction period.
“I think the first thing should be fixing the intercom,” Olivia Schweikart said. The majority of the student body concurs when they relive Mr. Parker’s top Christmas songs. “Science labs. Most of them are out of date and need new hardware,” junior Nathan Fox said. And even the obvious was pointed out by a senior that the broken bathrooms and “dysfunctional AC units” need to be fixed.
Teachers realize there are technology issues as well and are excited for the “critically needed” renovations.
So what will be commencing at the end of this school year? “There has been confirmation of new corridors and mini media center areas that will help the issues that deal with crowds of students at lunch,” said Mrs. Leah Faris, a history teacher. The air conditioning system is receiving the essential refurbishing it needs, as well as all the windows and doors.
In the blueprints, there is an abundance of wireless access points for the mobile and desktop devices we use. And especially for teachers, there will be plasma TVs with computer input that don’t rely on transitory lives of bulbs. So does this mean delayed or even cancelled school?
No, in fact, it was said that the renovation is planned to be broken into phases so that only specific areas of the school are worked on at a time. “Teachers will undoubtedly be given ample time to prepare for any relocation[s] or adjustments that must be made to accommodate construction, so we may need to be flexible and innovative at times,” Mrs. Robin Dauma, a teacher of 11th grade English, said.
Bob Jones teachers and students are enthusiastic and prepared for what looks like the most significant step in BJHS history.
