New School or New Opportunity
A New Chance for AHS
By Kalvin Welle
Posted March 22, 2016
As you walk through the halls of Aitkin High School, what thoughts first come to mind? Are they good ones or bad ones? Is it that our school is painted different colors from our proud Aitkin Gobbler red and black? Or maybe you are thinking how old our school is and how it may need to be updated?
As most people know, last year the school tried to pass a referendum for a new school, but it failed. For many of you current students of AHS, hope was lost for an updated facility. As many of you may not know, the school is taking steps towards improving our school.
The process began by bringing in a firm called Foster, Jacobs & Johnson, Inc. to help the school get out and talk to people and get their opinions. This company talked to a select group of juniors and seniors and got their opinions on our current school situation. Following that, FJJ talked to the teachers and staff of AHS and their opinions were given. A task force was then created, made up of about 30 people with different backgrounds, beliefs and opinions. They have had meetings for the past few months and have been making a plan for a new school. These members split into four different groups. The first group was the “status quo group.” These people thought the current situation at AHS was fine and that nothing should be changed. The second group was the “repair and maintain group.” This group said to fix the problems that need to be addressed and that there should be no remodeling or additions done to the school. The third group was the “remodeling/additions group.” They thought that any problems should be fixed and that remodeling and additions to the school were needed to meet current needs. The last and final group was the “new school group.” This group stated that building a new school was necessary and that the high school, elementary school, or both needed a new facility.
The task force then picked the top two groups, which were the new school group and the major remodel group. They then voted again on one of these options and the vote came out that they were going to go with building a new school. Now while this is good news to us students, that doesn’t mean we are getting a new school yet. Now the task force will present their idea and plans to the school board and from there the school board takes over and decides whether to go with the plan, decline the plan, or come up with their own.
There are many pros and cons about both ideas. For example, the average classroom size at AHS is 740 square feet whereas MDE guidelines suggest that a school our size should have 850-950 square feet. Another thing that should be looked at is how little space there are as far as sports facilities. Right now, AHS has so little space that teams are forced to practice in the cafeteria or hallways. For example, our dance state champions are practice in the lunchroom. We also have student athletes going over to the West Side church to practice using their gym. This is a major safety concern. We have 7-12 grade kids that are walking on roads without sidewalks and crossing major highways during one of the busiest times of the day.
Another big issue is the overall physical condition of the school. Towards the end of last summer we had part of the roof fail on the high school causing it to flood and do damage to our school. They repaired that but there are still occasional leaks in the new gym and right by the concessions. Now while they may have fixed it, there is a possibility that the rest of the roof could be in the same condition and before we know it, there could be another flood. There are walls that are cracked, and about half of the classrooms have “fake” walls that sound travels through, therefore disrupting students learning. Another key issue is that our school is currently landlocked, which means there is no room for additions or expansion. According to state recommendations, a new school should be on 50-60 acres of land. Right now, our school itself is on four acres and roughly 30 acres with all the athletic fields.
While there are some things wrong with this school, there are a couple good things. The best thing about our school is the location. Right now, we are in the middle of Aitkin. This is a good thing because students can walk to gas stations or fast food places within a couple of minutes. If we were to move locations, the school would most likely be located somewhere on the border of or outside the city limits.
The big questions for everyone of Aitkin is “Is it worth it to build a new school?” To build a new school, it would cost around $55-65 million dollars. To remodel our current high school, it would cost roughly $35-45 million dollars. While both these numbers are very high, there is not a vast difference in the cost to build a new school and a major remodel.
There is a school board meeting on March 29 where the board will decide what plan they want to go with. After that there will be a community vote and that will determine what happens to our school.
Posted March 22, 2016
As you walk through the halls of Aitkin High School, what thoughts first come to mind? Are they good ones or bad ones? Is it that our school is painted different colors from our proud Aitkin Gobbler red and black? Or maybe you are thinking how old our school is and how it may need to be updated?
As most people know, last year the school tried to pass a referendum for a new school, but it failed. For many of you current students of AHS, hope was lost for an updated facility. As many of you may not know, the school is taking steps towards improving our school.
The process began by bringing in a firm called Foster, Jacobs & Johnson, Inc. to help the school get out and talk to people and get their opinions. This company talked to a select group of juniors and seniors and got their opinions on our current school situation. Following that, FJJ talked to the teachers and staff of AHS and their opinions were given. A task force was then created, made up of about 30 people with different backgrounds, beliefs and opinions. They have had meetings for the past few months and have been making a plan for a new school. These members split into four different groups. The first group was the “status quo group.” These people thought the current situation at AHS was fine and that nothing should be changed. The second group was the “repair and maintain group.” This group said to fix the problems that need to be addressed and that there should be no remodeling or additions done to the school. The third group was the “remodeling/additions group.” They thought that any problems should be fixed and that remodeling and additions to the school were needed to meet current needs. The last and final group was the “new school group.” This group stated that building a new school was necessary and that the high school, elementary school, or both needed a new facility.
The task force then picked the top two groups, which were the new school group and the major remodel group. They then voted again on one of these options and the vote came out that they were going to go with building a new school. Now while this is good news to us students, that doesn’t mean we are getting a new school yet. Now the task force will present their idea and plans to the school board and from there the school board takes over and decides whether to go with the plan, decline the plan, or come up with their own.
There are many pros and cons about both ideas. For example, the average classroom size at AHS is 740 square feet whereas MDE guidelines suggest that a school our size should have 850-950 square feet. Another thing that should be looked at is how little space there are as far as sports facilities. Right now, AHS has so little space that teams are forced to practice in the cafeteria or hallways. For example, our dance state champions are practice in the lunchroom. We also have student athletes going over to the West Side church to practice using their gym. This is a major safety concern. We have 7-12 grade kids that are walking on roads without sidewalks and crossing major highways during one of the busiest times of the day.
Another big issue is the overall physical condition of the school. Towards the end of last summer we had part of the roof fail on the high school causing it to flood and do damage to our school. They repaired that but there are still occasional leaks in the new gym and right by the concessions. Now while they may have fixed it, there is a possibility that the rest of the roof could be in the same condition and before we know it, there could be another flood. There are walls that are cracked, and about half of the classrooms have “fake” walls that sound travels through, therefore disrupting students learning. Another key issue is that our school is currently landlocked, which means there is no room for additions or expansion. According to state recommendations, a new school should be on 50-60 acres of land. Right now, our school itself is on four acres and roughly 30 acres with all the athletic fields.
While there are some things wrong with this school, there are a couple good things. The best thing about our school is the location. Right now, we are in the middle of Aitkin. This is a good thing because students can walk to gas stations or fast food places within a couple of minutes. If we were to move locations, the school would most likely be located somewhere on the border of or outside the city limits.
The big questions for everyone of Aitkin is “Is it worth it to build a new school?” To build a new school, it would cost around $55-65 million dollars. To remodel our current high school, it would cost roughly $35-45 million dollars. While both these numbers are very high, there is not a vast difference in the cost to build a new school and a major remodel.
There is a school board meeting on March 29 where the board will decide what plan they want to go with. After that there will be a community vote and that will determine what happens to our school.