Renovation in Neshaminy

Here's an article from the BCCT today on the renovation of the Middletown High School.

You know, when they talk about $77 million to fund the project and updated desks and flat screen televisions, I cannot help but think about how small and petty the NSNs look in renovating a fifty year old school at a cheap cut rate cost. There's nothing wrong with frugality or responsible conservative spending, but all we're going to do is bring out the can of spackle and patch, poke, and prod our way to another second rate showing. For God's sake, they spent $77 million on only THIRTY FOUR classrooms. We're going to take a building shell from the 1950s, hollow it out, and put in a marshmallow center filled with goodies acquired on the second hand market. (This is not a shot at the work the current maintenance staff is doing and the quality of work later workers may do. We're going to continue using second hand equipment because that's all we can afford. We had a chance to step up and blew it.)

This isn't a question of the money differences between the Neshaminy and Morrisville school districts. It's the difference in the progressive and negative thinking modes of the two communities. Unfortunately, we think second rate sometimes, and our new board members want to perpetuate this thinking. Look at the pride that the Neshaminy community has. Remember what Eleanor Roosevelt said? "No one can make you inferior without your consent." Would someone please take away the inferiority permission slips from the school board and let's start to have some sort of real community pride?

Stop the School people....Look and be ashamed. Once again the Academy Award for Most Pointless Enduring Mediocrity goes to...Morrisville.

School offers peek at new classrooms

Today, Neshaminy High School students will be returning from their winter break to some brand new classrooms.

But many teens and their families got a sneak peek of the two-story, 34-classroom wing during a ribbon-cutting ceremony Monday night.

The event marked the completion of the first phase of the $82 million Middletown high school renovation and construction project. The district borrowed $77 million to fund the project, officials said.

All of the updated classrooms include new desks and flat-screen televisions. Teachers also have planning centers for each subject's department, said administrators.

“It's so spacious,” said 16-year-old Lauren Holliday referring to the new building's wide hallways. “We can actually breathe. Before it was so crammed when classes let out.”

A second two-story, 34-classroom wing should be done by the summer. Both facilities feed into the main corridor called “Main Street,” which links the new main entrance, auxiliary gym and auditorium, said business administrator Joseph Paradise.

A section of classrooms will be torn down to make room for a road leading to that entrance, he said.

“There's a synergy for the first time connecting the entire high school,” said Paradise.

Although there were many people who wanted the district to build a whole new school, the school board settled on 60 percent new space and the rest renovated, administrators said.

The school's current main offices will be also be demolished and rebuilt by the summer. At that time, 16 modular classrooms will be disassembled, officials said.

“It's beautiful and very bright,” said Middletown resident Debbie Hazelett.

But while the project is 78 weeks in, there's still 90 more to go. It's expected to be finished in September 2009, administrators said.

“This is a place of learning where tens of thousands will walk through the halls to prepare themselves to change the future...” said Superintendent Paul Kadri.