Good Things Gainesville: celebrating a new school year with renovated facilities
There is just something about the start of a new school year. Even when your student days are long behind you, the fresh start signaled by the turn of the academic calendar is exhilarating. Thanks to the hard work of dedicated community partners, we have even more to celebrate this school year.
Fueled by the 2018 Half Cent for Schools sales tax initiative, we continue to make tremendous progress on our Alachua County Public Schools construction projects. Nearly $63 million has been generated by the sales tax to date and $110 million was bonded by the district to speed up the first six projects.
Hard-working teams, led by the Alachua County School Board and district staff, have made significant advances on the ambitious facilities revitalization plans developed with input from parents and the community. Those plans are now being brought to life thanks to our local construction firms Scorpio, Charles Perry Partners Inc. and Parrish McCall.
Last year, students were welcomed into the brand new Terwilliger Elementary School, thanks to Parrish McCall, and the essentially brand-new Howard Bishop Middle and Metcalfe Elementary schools, from Scorpio and Parrish McCall, respectively.
And, last month, the community came out to celebrate the revitalized Idylwild Elementary School with a “Back to the Nest” ribbon cutting and carnival. Charles Perry Partners demolished five buildings and remodeled and renovated seven. A state-of-the-art cafetorium, a new covered play area and playground, and a redesigned parent pickup loop combine to give our students, staff and parents a wonderful learning environment.
A transitional school on the Westwood Middle School campus, constructed by Scorpio, housed Howard Bishop staff and students during that school’s renovation and will next be used to house Westwood, and then Littlewood Elementary School, as those projects get underway.
The Westwood Middle work is next up, with construction to begin by the end of this year and completion set for summer of 2024. Also underway with Scorpio, a new classroom building for Oak View Middle School that will add 16 new classrooms and a collaborative learning space. This project has an expected completion date in December of this year.
And while new construction is attention-getting, a majority of the dollars spent to date and additional funds going forward are being invested in all of our schools, with new and renovated classrooms, cafeterias, auditoriums, roofs, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) and safety and security work already completed.
Everyone who has tackled what seemed like a simple home renovation project can appreciate how truly massive these planning and coordination efforts are, and to see the progress made — supply chain and labor shortages notwithstanding — is the best of good news.
Another challenge being tackled this year: ensuring our preschoolers gain the skills they need to successfully enter elementary school. The Children’s Trust of Alachua County, in partnership with the Greater Gainesville Chamber and the Business Leadership Institute for Early Learning, recently celebrated the graduation of its first MasterClass of business owners.
More from Eric Godet:
Good Things Gainesville: Progress being made on east side
Good Things Gainesville: our career and technical education professionals
Good Things Gainesville: our resilient community
The Children’s Trust has long been laser-focused on meeting the needs of children aged 0 to 5, and the research is very clear. The Brookings Institution reports that “community-based early care and education, delivered at scale, can provide lasting impacts, and may serve as a catalyst for children’s success later in life, particularly for those from less-resourced environments.” But, the research emphasizes, high-quality care is the key to achieving these long-term outcomes.
The Masterclass curriculum provides early learning business owners the tools they need to successfully provide such high-quality care, and enrollment for the second MasterClass begins in October.
These efforts are the direct result of our community coming together to identify and solve a problem — how do we provide the best for our children?
We certainly have challenges to tackle going forward as we continue to address the economic pressures brought on by the pandemic. In the state of Florida, for example, the average cost of construction has grown 33% over the last two years, with the cost of iron and steel up 90%, crude petroleum up 102% and natural gas up a whopping 201%.
Our local firms are committed to doing everything they can to keep our projects on track. And we must work harder to address the achievement gap that has plagued our district for years, starting with our earliest learners, but continuing with lifelong learning: K-12, college and university, career and technical training, and upskilling.
Challenges notwithstanding, I am delighted to shine a light on our successes as we start another academic year. Let’s enjoy the fresh-start feeling as we continue on our journey to give our children everything, which is nothing less than they deserve.
Eric Godet is president/CEO of the Greater Gainesville Chamber. He will be contributing more Good Things Gainesville guest columns in the coming months.
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This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Eric Godet: Progress on Alachua County Public Schools construction
