From June 23rd until September 4th when classes resume, the Partnership schools are filled with painters, carpenters, contractors, technology specialists, and even volunteers who are tackling projects, large and small. Working in concert with Kwame Millar, COO and each school’s Operations Manager, George Grenier, our Director of Facilities, mobilized crews with military precision so the bulk of the capital improvements, including the all important, year-end clear outs are completed before the first student arrives. This summer was no different as the Partnership dedicated over $2 million to this effort.
Here is a short list of some of the transformative improvements and simple upgrades:
Immaculate Conception was treated to a Calder Foundation-funded new Pre-K classroom that will allow the school to welcome an additional class of students. Cleaning and painting was also on the docket for the entrance hall and classrooms.
Sacred Heart School began a critically needed façade restoration project that will continue throughout the next few years plus they added another Kindergarten class and installed new fire doors for added safety.
St. Athanasius completed phase two of their playground project from last summer. With neatly designed and built storage units, the children’s toys are easily accessible when needed and then safely tucked away when not in use.
St. Mark School saw a major clean up on every floor and in every classroom, including a fresh coat of paint even in the cafeteria as a result of the Child Nutrition program sponsored by the Archdiocese.
Mt. Carmel-Holy Rosary saw their art room, which doubles as a science lab, receive a terrific, much-needed renovation, plus the installation of a new fire alarm, and the execution of a façade restoration project.
Our Lady Queen of Angels also benefited from a new Calder Foundation-funded Kindergarten room when the old space was gutted and a beautiful, child-friendly space was created replete with cubbies, bulletin boards and furniture. Even the after-school program saw a face lift with the removal of old carpeting and the installation of brightly colored, environmentally-friendly interlocking soft flooring.
Four schools, OLQA, ICS, St. Mark and St. Athanasius will return this year to newly re-surfaced magnetic whiteboards turning the old blackboards into a distant memory. And all six schools took part in ConEd’s energy conservation lighting program which covered 60% of the cost of the project. Pleased with this summer’s projects, George, Kwame and the six OMs already have their eye on work for summer 2015, because at the Partnership, the end of school is when the heavy lifting begins.