The recent pipe burst in the middle school severely damaged the Farragut wing, forcing middle schoolers to relocate their learning spaces. The middle schoolers’ school days have since changed as many classrooms on their side of the building are unable to be used. Students have reported that anywhere from one to even seven of their classes have moved into the highschool.
Positives
Despite the inconveniences this switch to the highschool poses on the middle school students, one positive is that it gives them a preview into what highschool will be like for them in the future. One eighth grader mentioned how having classes in the high school would make the transition to high school “less daunting.” The relocation of classes to the high school, many middle schoolers believe, will help prepare them for highschool.
In addition, the art hallway suffered from flood damage, including art supplies.
Negatives
The fifth and sixth graders have shifted to the classrooms used primarily by the seventh and eighth graders. Because of this, many classes for older middle school students have moved to the highschool.
7th grade and 8th grade classes are split between the middle school and high school parts of the building. Moving back and forth between both sides of the building is a main complaint of the older middle schoolers, highlighting its inconvenience.
“I have to go from the middle school to the high school to the middle school and then back to the high school,” said Julia Levan, a seventh grader.
“I miss how everything was very easy to get to,” said Bella Canetta, a seventh grader.
“A lot of classes are in the high school then suddenly in the middle school on the other side…it’s annoying,” said Fergus Asher, an eighth grader.
The increased distance between classes has affected students’ punctuality, although based on feedback, teachers are understanding of this. Meanwhile, fifth and sixth graders don’t have classes in the high school, but most of their classrooms were moved to other parts of the middle school.
Another downside to the flooding is that many fifth and sixth graders’ lockers were impacted by water damage and had to be removed. School staff tried to save students’ belongings that were in lockers or classrooms during the flood and were deemed “salvageable,” although items such as notebooks and papers were thrown out.
“People lost their big notebooks for social studies, and social studies takes a lot of notes,” explained Jemima Kuniholm, a sixth grader, “I’m a little mad they didn’t pay for my notebook.” She also mentioned how people have had their computers, glasses, and jackets damaged by water in their lockers.
These kinds of items were put into bags and given to students the day they came back from winter break.
“I can’t imagine…some of the stuff that was salvageable was still wet,” said Jemima.
Changes to Learning
The middle school students’ ability to learn does not seem to be hindered by effects from the flood, although the water has damaged teaching supplies. Jane Weber, a seventh grader, mentioned that middle school students have to use chromebooks more frequently since their papers were ruined. The rise in technology use brings occasional challenges like lagging, but it also encourages students to be more mindful of their belongings.
“We have to be a little more responsible because we always have to charge our chromebooks and make sure we have them,” says Jane.
Another struggle faced by the middle schoolers is having classes in the middle school auditorium. The lack of space with the auditorium chairs, which have foldable table spaces attached to them, seems to be a major inconvenience for students.
“The auditorium has these little tables that pull up, which is kind of hard…there’s a little small surface that’s kind of hard for tests because you can’t put up dividers, and your work can’t even fit. You can put one paper on it and you have no other space,” said Jemima.
The Bathroom Situation
Middle school students are not supposed to use the high school bathrooms while a high school student is inside. Although there do seem to be occasional, brief encounters. For example, “One time I was in the bathroom and there were two [people’s] feet in one stall.. And I kind of left because I felt uncomfortable,” said Jane.
Adjusting
One change to the middle schoolers’ daily schedules is the shift to utilizing one main entrance, located by the recess yard. The previous entrances were located in the Farragut Wing and are currently blocked by construction.
Getting lost in the high school seems to be a common thing to happen to middle schoolers. Sophie Kangas, a seventh grader, describes how “It’s not fun…I just kind of try to find my way around.”
