Graphic by Charlotte Alden.
Major renovations are scheduled to take place at Whitman over the summer, giving the school a necessary update and helping to accommodate the growing student body.
The renovations will include: a new track, a facelift for the bathrooms, fire alarm repairs, a new roof which may have solar panels and the addition of four portable classrooms.
Principal Alan Goodwin requested the portable classrooms due to the influx of students entering Whitman next year, he said.
“It’ll be an inconvenience for students to have to go out there, but we have no choice,” Goodwin said. “We need more space.”
After informing the teachers of the upcoming renovation, Goodwin asked for those who would be willing to move into a portable to volunteer. The volunteers were math teachers David Paulson, Michael Stebbins and James Kuhn, and history teacher John Floyd.
Some math teachers believe they would be prime candidates for the portables because math is a subject that requires few materials and classroom equipment.
“For the most part, we teach and you listen versus having the need for a lot of space for group work or labs,” Paulson said.
Despite being equipped with proper resources, some teachers are still hesitant to make the transition.
Stebbins’ major concern is the isolation that comes with teaching from a portable, he said.
“Having a class that is so far out away from everybody else, you feel like you are on your own island,” Stebbins said.
Being separated from the main building comes with some complications, including questions regarding whether there will be access to internet, printers and Promethean boards, Stebbins said.
Although these may be of concern for the upcoming school year, the building will be closed over the summer and the staff will have to be relocated to another local school, Goodwin said.
“We can’t be in the building when there is no air conditioning and the building stinks of tar,” he said.
If all goes as planned, the renovations will be completed before the first day of school.
