New Beacon High School ready for launch

By Maeleeke J. Lavan
Poughkeepsie Journal

 

Karl Rabe photos/Journal Helene Perez and fellow Beacon High School math teachers unpack school books Wednesday in the new Beacon High School building. In the background, from left, are Brian Soltish, Jim Johnson and Jeff Matus.

Beacon High School teachers are instructed Wednesday in technology and Web design. Each teacher is to have a Web page in the new Beacon High School.

BEACON -- The new $30.4 million Beacon High School building has everything it needs -- except students.

And the entire student body won't be at school until Friday, even though classes for the district officially start on Tuesday.

In order to help everyone ease into the new school, students will attend the first week's classes on staggered days, depending on their grade level.

''I think it will make things easier for staff and students,'' Assistant Principal Brenda Alston said. Having a smaller amount of students in the new school will better prepare staff ''to deal with everything at one time.''

Senior and junior classes will have their first day on Tuesday. Sophomores will begin Wednesday and freshmen Thursday. On Friday, the entire school will be together.

It seems as if the entire community is undergoing a transformation as administrators, students, teachers and parents prepare to open the school's doors to more than 1,000 students.

Some computers were still in their boxes in the library Monday as students wandered the campus completing sports physicals and getting their locker and class assignments. Other than that, the school is ready to go, administrators said.

''It's a real school already,'' new Principal John Murphy said.

Smooth transitions

Murphy, who has been with the district less than a month, said his job change and the transition from the old school to the new one have been pleasant.

''I've been in high school buildings all over the country and I have yet to walk into a building as well-planned and as state-of-the-art as this one,'' he said.

Final adjustments will be made during the first week of school, as teachers -- familiarizing themselves with their classrooms -- will shuttle furniture and other items from one school to another.

In order to get used to their new environment, students were invited to a ''seek-n-search'' this week to familiarize themselves with classroom and locker locations.

''A new building is like new clothes,'' Murphy said. ''You have to feel good about your new environment. We're trying to make sure everyone feels this way.''

Sisters Sarah and Caroline Clayton said the seek-n-search was exciting and helpful.

''The seek-n-search was really my first chance to go find out where lockers are and where classes are and actually see the whole building together,'' 17-year-old Caroline Clayton said.

Sarah Clayton, 15, who has been practicing with the girls' swim team for two weeks, said the athletic department is the most intriguing part of the school.

''Everybody goes to see the pool,'' she said of the six-lane swimming pool. ''It's such a big thing for us to have that in our town and to have all the technology to go with it.''