Facilities are increasingly crowded at Lake Park High School, but officials hope a proposed facilities planning committee will be able to come up with suggestions to help ease the crunch.
Enrollment projections indicate continued growth in the district, which has 2,832 students in two buildings. By 2005-06, that number will grow to 2,971 and peak at the West campus in 2007-08 with 1,487 students–up from its current 1,373.
Ann Stacy, assistant principal for administrative services, said the committee would be made up of staff members, residents and business leaders. The school is hoping the community can provide ideas to alleviate the school’s space needs.
Stacy said the school “has been creative so far in the use of space” but added that too many areas are being compromised.
“We’ve had classes in study halls and auditoriums, offices have been put in what were once custodial closets and we’ve lost both of our green rooms off the stage to offices as well,” Stacy said. “Technology has also cost us space, since computer labs have been installed in rooms that were once traditional classrooms.”
Stacy said Lake Park has already applied for a grant for students who are not able to meet in a traditional classroom.
“We’re getting wear and tear on areas of the building that wouldn’t normally receive that much use,” Stacy said. “Even when you add something like 50 students, that’s two classes worth of students who have to meet seven periods a day.”
School officials expect the as-yet-unnamed committee to begin meeting next month and hope to have a report by mid-October.
