'It's breathtaking:' Umatilla High School gets classroom makeover from Addition Financial

Cindy Peterson
·2 min read
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UMATILLA — Umatilla High School Principal Brent Frazier was speechless as he walked into the school’s newly-renovated resource room on Thursday, thanks to the Renovate to Educate contest by Addition Financial.

“Wow, this is just awesome,” Frazier said. “Thank you so much. It’s going to be a special place for the kids to come. This room is going to be used by a lot of teachers and it is truly going to make a difference.”

The resource room, its new theme “The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow,” is a place where UHS students in any grade can go to pick up personal care items, food and clothing. The room will also be used for restorative sessions to discuss social-emotional awareness and will be used when students need private assistance with the school’s mental health liaison.

Encouraging words were included in the classroom makeover. [Cindy Peterson/Correspondent]
Encouraging words were included in the classroom makeover. [Cindy Peterson/Correspondent]

“It’s breathtaking,” teacher Amanda Carl said. “I’m going to be using this room for behavioral intervention and I love that this makeover gives a calming atmosphere for those interventions.”

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This is Addition Financial's fourth year awarding one public school teacher from Orange, Seminole, Lake and Osceola counties with a free classroom makeover with up to $2,000 in renovations. Each winner is partnered with a Seminole State College Interior Design student who collaborates with the teacher and school to bring their dream classroom to life.

Senior Jordan Zaremba was chosen to design the resource room at Umatilla High.

The classroom rennovation also came with all new desks, teacher desk, school supplies and storage. [Cindy Peterson/Correspondent]
The classroom rennovation also came with all new desks, teacher desk, school supplies and storage. [Cindy Peterson/Correspondent]

“We talked about all the needs this classroom would serve and how it could be versatile,” Zaremba said. “I wanted to incorporate nature because it’s been proven to relax people and help kids with attention difficulties. The teacher also said many of the students don’t have people in their lives who motivate them so we incorporated motivational sayings on the walls to remind the kids they are special.”

Zaremba also added a unique seating section for a more personal atmosphere for those one-on-one sessions with social workers or counselors.

“We are so excited to see the result of this amazing partnership,” Lake County Assistant Superintendent Amy Cockcraft said. “Kids spend a lot of time in the classrooms and it’s exciting to see them excited to come in and learn.”

The room also came with all new desks, teacher desk, school supplies and storage.

“At the end of the day, this is really a prize for the kids,” Addition Financial President and CEO Kevin Miller said. “This is something they will experience for years to come.”

This article originally appeared on Daily Commercial: Umatilla High wins classroom makeover from Addition Financial contest