Bowdish Changes Profound
Changes at the renovated Bowdish Junior High School are so profound, this might as well be a new school.
The main entrance is a broad hall with a high ceiling, benches that will invite students to nestle in, and attractive design touches. The classrooms, some stacked with piles of classroom furniture, are bright with sunshine.
One father, whose two sons attended Bowdish in recent years, lost his way while touring the school.
“I got all turned around. I didn’t know where I was,” said Ed Mikesell, who is executive director of business operations for Central Valley School District.
The school’s footprint - its outline on the ground - has changed. Its three wings are shorter and broader than before. Its classroom organization is all new.
“We had four corner posts and a roof,” after demolition, said Principal Bob Johnson, “and we even replaced the roof.”
He’s exaggerating a bit. The two gyms remain, as well as some of the heating system, the floors and the utility tunnels, said Dave Jackman, CV auxiliary services director. Most of the basic structure of the classroom wings is the same, although there is some new siding.
Bowdish has stayed within its overall $7.8 million budget; $300,000 to $400,000 remains for phase two of the construction, in which the practice gym will be modernized and more site work done. That will occur next summer.
In many places, the new school shows evidence of careful planning by teachers and architects.
The new multi-purpose room includes a versatile stage area. The science teachers will have small outdoor “ecocenters” to develop as living laboratories. The in-house suspension center allows for eight students and easy supervision.
The school is even equipped with two “isolation rooms,” each slightly bigger than a phone booth. These are places, Johnson said, where two students can be separated to cool off after a fight.
The band room and athletic locker rooms are also designed for maximum performance and efficiency.
One glitch at Bowdish: Lockers won’t arrive until the first week or so of school. The company that originally had that contract went bankrupt; finding a replacement source for lockers hasn’t been easy.
MORE CONSTRUCTION Construction at the new Liberty Lake Elementary School is nearly complete. Teachers are starting to unpack furniture and supplies. Principal Dennis Olson took school board members on a tour earlier this week of the project. Total cost of the school is $9.7 million. At East Valley School District’s Trent Elementary School, it’s time for the last-minute rush. A two-phase $5.3 million renovation has been going on for the past 14 months. “We’re coming in just under the wire (on the budget),” said Principal Shelley Harding. A celebration in honor of the newly rebuilt school will be planned once school is under way.