Recordpub.com - Students move into new junior, senior high complex

By Deborah Guziak

Record-Courier staff writer

A sense of pride can be seen in Mogadore, from the green and white signs that read like a Burma Shave commercial alongside the road to the painted white Wildcat paw prints that run down Curtis Street to the football field.

And that sense of pride also can be seen in the new school building, which houses the junior and senior high school students.

The building replaces the old high school and an annex building that was used to house the junior high. The buildings were separated by a driveway, and every day students went from one building to the other for classes, no matter the weather.

"It's really nice to have everyone in the same building," said Superintendent Terry Byers, who also is the building principal.

This is the first year the new building has been opened for school. At 90,000 square feet, it is one-third larger than the old buildings that it replaced, Byers said.

"We also have the latest technology that we couldn't have in the old buildings," Byers said. "Teachers can do Power Point presentations, there are digital projectors and cable hook ups. It's also wired so in the future, students will be able to bring in their laptops and download notes and other school work."

Before the new building, the district's technology had been limited severely by the lack of wiring and cable connections needed for technology that is used by most schools across the county. This was due to the age of the buildings -- the annex was built in 1929, and the old high school was a little younger, Byers said.

Another feature of the new building is the commons area where students may eat their lunches. While a lunchroom may be a common room in schools everywhere, it wasn't in Mogadore where there wasn't a kitchen for 30 years. When the bell rang for lunch in the old buildings, students fed money into vending machines, often purchasing junk food. The older students were allowed to leave the school with a parent's permission for lunch. Now, the students have a cafeteria and a kitchen that serves hot meals. Students no longer may leave the building for lunch.

"We've noticed that the kids are less rambunctious after lunch," Byers said of eating in the cafeteria and not from vending machines. "There are no vending machines in the building."

The commons area also can be used for assemblies, drama productions and musical concerts as there is a stage.

The new building has one extra classroom for growth, although it is used currently by classes. There also is a community room at one end of the hallway for public use. However, parents needn't worry about the safety of their children while they're at school.

"You can leave the building, but you can't get back in," Byers said, adding the doors are locked during the school day. The doorway that connects the community room to the school also is locked at all times.

"We want the school to be as safe as it can be for the students," he said.