News

School overhauls lead the way for opening day

By Ethan Forman
Staff writer
Published: August 29, 2008

DANVERS — The field house floor has been stripped, the locker room smells of fresh paint, and a new handicapped ramp has been built at the side of the academic wing.

Danvers High is nearly ready for opening day Wednesday.

Not much is new by way of construction at the 250,000-square-foot building, which dates back to the 1960s and '70s. Town officials who toured the building and other schools yesterday have long eyed it for a major multimillion-dollar makeover.

The project would overhaul the 1960s three-story academic wing, revamp heating and cooling systems, and perhaps redo some of the core areas.

Officials are pushing the project forward this year. Next month, a designer selection panel will start to select an architect, Superintendent Lisa Dana said.

Still, high school officials want change in the school's climate before any walls come down by holding a first-of-its-kind freshman orientation.

On the first day, the 265 or so ninth-graders will report at 10:30 a.m., instead of 7:30 a.m., said Principal Thomas Murray, who is in his second year on the job.

Other high school students will be sent home at 11:30 a.m., except 100 upper-class mentors who will help freshmen with team-building activities to make the students feel welcome. The class already held an ice cream social on Tuesday to get to know one another.

"They have a motto," Murray said about the freshman class. "Failure is not an option."

Ninth-graders won't crack the books until their second day of school, Murray said.

Students may notice a lot of new faces among high school staff, Murray said, as he has hired 12 new teachers to fill positions, including seven vacancies created by retirements.

The high school will also run two new programs this year, a "Transitions" program for students with disabilities, and an "Opportunity" program for students at risk of dropping out.

Dana said the district was able to elevate Maureen Lojko to elementary curriculum director and now has curriculum directors at the elementary, middle and high school levels.

This summer, Dana added an additional kindergarten classroom at Smith School as all elementary schools start a full-day kindergarten program for the first time.

"This will be the first year all our kindergartners start on the same day as their peers in grades one through five," Dana said.