PEABODY — The swing of the ceremonial sledgehammer yesterday morning could give the most at-risk students in Peabody a crack at a quality way of life.
The Northshore Mall hosted a "wall-breaking" ceremony that marks the start of work on the Educational Resource Center, which will be an alternative high school program run by the Peabody public schools. The resource center is being funded by the city, a donation by the insurance industry and the Simon Youth Foundation, the charitable arm of the mall's parent company Simon Properties.
"The vision is being transformed into physical reality," said mall manager Mark Whiting, who served as a master of ceremonies at the event in the former Kitchen Etc.
Whiting credited Peabody's leaders, including Mayor Michael Bonfanti, who were critical of moving the project forward as quickly as it has. The mall made its first formal proposal to the School Committee in December, and the City Council approved the $200,000 expense earlier this month.
"Peabody, like other communities, has a problem," Bonfanti told the crowd of about 75. "Many of our children fall through the cracks."
He took aim at what he called a "dysfunctional" education system that focused on exams and lacked proper funding.
Sometimes a standard education did not meet the needs of all children, he said. The mayor noted that Simon Foundation, with its 25 existing resource centers around the country, brought a proven track record to the city.
Schools Superintendent C. Milton Burnett reflected on the presence of the mall in Peabody and his own experience as a child visiting the shopping center.
"This is the right program for Peabody at the right time," he said. "This is going to be an absolute wonderful program for our students."
Rick Markoff, executive vice president of Simon Youth Foundation, also praised Peabody for spearheading the effort. He said the community had been "blessed with outstanding leadership."
They were also celebrating the donation of $250,500 in donations from the insurance industry, including Travelers Companies Inc. and Global Risk Consultants.
Markoff said the resource center could mean a diploma, a career and even further education for children who otherwise might drop out.
"Ladies and gentlemen, let's break that wall," he said before the group joined in to give a wall in the former retail space a whack.
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