FRANKLIN -- Franklin High School finally has some breathing room this school year after the Oak Street Elementary School relocated to the new Horace Mann building.
"It truly is much nicer," said Principal John Lucas.
Twenty-five high school rooms were freed up with the elementary school's move.
"Because of that additional number of rooms, most teachers have one classroom they teach in," Lucas said. "We were able to move all classes that were taught in other areas, such as the library."
Lucas said the extra space has a direct impact on the quality of education -- and teachers throughout the school agree.
"It's much more typical of what you would think of when you think of a teacher having a classroom," Lucas said.
English teacher Sylvia Baca said before teachers had to rush across the building when the bell rang, carrying materials with them and sometimes having to rearrange desks when they got to the next classroom.
"It's a much more effective and expedited way to get the kids in there and get them focused on an assignment," she said.
A history of learning
The high school was built in 1972. Oak Street Elementary has occupied the building since 1975, Lucas said.
The high school regained six rooms when the town was redistricted with the opening of the Helen Keller Elementary and Annie Sullivan Middle School complex in 2002. Before Oak Street vacated the building, there were 1,760 students in it. Lucas said capacity is about 1,700. This year, there are 1,451 students in the high school, up from 1,342 last year.
"It should be set now for what we know is the current expected growth based on enrollment in the lower grades," Lucas said.
When Oak Street moved in, Lucas said, they put in bricks to raise the floor level to fit the facilities to the students. Crews worked this summer to take out the bricks and make the bathrooms the correct height for the high schoolers.
The town also spent $70,000 on new furniture that fits high school students. "The last delivery was 11 hours before we opened for the school year," Lucas said.
He said in some ways he will miss having the elementary school in the building. "It was a very positive experience," he said. High school students in child development courses would work with the elementary students using the Oak Street School as a "real world lab setting."
"They were not an inconvenience, but the lack of space was a handicap," he said.
Restructuring the space
The Oak Street-occupied high school made due with whatever space it had. The auditorium was divided into three classrooms with theater using the front and math classes in the back.
Theater/English teacher Marushka Waters said it was particularly hard on days when the math classes were testing.
"It was a nightmare -- theater is not a quiet subject," she said.
Waters said it was also hard not having any storage space for props and costumes. "It was horrible when we were in there -- they would use the lecture hall and I would have to move 80 paint cans," she said.
Waters also had to teach her English class in another section of the building. "I would have to go upstairs and I was late everyday," she said.
Now Waters has three teaching areas -- the auditorium and two rooms directly across the hallway. She uses one of the rooms as a props/costume room and the other as a standard classroom for both her theater and English classes. "I feel like I have a performing arts area," she said.
Space used for the Oak Street School cafeteria is now used for math and computer classes. "This room made itself beautifully suitable for the combination," Lucas said.
Some of the old Oak Street rooms are now used for science classes furnished with new science tables.
Health and physical education teacher Jim Artz said the athletics department has regained use of the small gym.
"It allows us a more functional environment," he said. "We have 30 to 35 students a class. If we had inclement weather, it really restrained what we could do. We had year round weight training during the winter because it provided us another classroom."
Owning a classroom
French teacher Kristy Thistle said it was a challenge before sharing classroom space and not having designated places for materials.
"I can't even express what it's like to have a room to myself," she said. "I have a spot for my dictionaries and kids know where to go to get dictionaries."
Biology teacher Katherine Garrison said having her own room gives her a sense of ownership. "It's very comfortable having my own space -- I can decorate it as I see fit," she said.
French teacher and foreign language director Michel Methot said some of the language rooms before were too small for the size of the classes. Now teachers can better utilize their space.
"It creates an ambiance for the kids," he said.
Math teacher Jason Chetlen put his mark on his room by painting three of the walls blue this summer; the chalkboard wall is beige. He said he also enjoys using the bulletin boards.
"Everything that goes up on the walls has something to do with what I'm doing in class," he said. "It presents a sense of pride. If I stay here for a number of years I know it's going to be relatively clean on the walls."
He said he also enjoys having his own computer desk work area and file cabinet. "I know no one else is going to be going back there in the course of the day," he said. "Having a quiet area for my preparation time is almost immeasurable."
Before, teachers could not stay in their own rooms during their free periods because other teachers were using them. Instead there was a common teacher work room where every teacher had a desk cubby area.
Math teacher Kevin Burr said although he feels more isolated now staying in his own room to do work, "it's a quieter atmosphere up here."
Students respond
The teachers aren't the only ones who appreciate the space.
Senior Matt Schwab said it makes a big difference in the hallways during class change. "It's easy to move around from class to class -- it's better for all of us," he said.
Sophomore Amy Wolf said the younger kids would get in the way at times. "There were always little kids coming from lunch or gym and you didn't want to walk in between them and break their (single-file) lines," she said.
Sophomore Caitlin Barlow said it improves classes. "You don't have to wait for a teacher to get to a different class, you can come in and start class right away," she said.
