By STEPHEN BARTLETT
PLATTSBURGH -- Jeremy Tennian wants to design golf courses someday.
Today, he's building himself a new school.
"First, we looked at the way the school is built and how inefficient it is in some areas," said the AuSable Valley Central School junior.
He and other students presented building plans this week to school officials and representatives of SEI design group, the Albany-based architectural firm hired by the district to design a renovation project funded through EXCEL aid. High School students in Alta Jo Longware's architectural class did this as part of their final project and exam.
"It was a great opportunity for my students," Longware said.
SOUGHT INPUT
Last year, voters approved the renovation project, which includes work district-wide, including technology upgrades, new classrooms, health-and-safety items and security improvements.
New York state provided school districts with EXCEL aid to offset the taxpayer share of construction costs.
"I was trying to come up with ways to incorporate meaningful student input into the planning and design of the EXCEL project renovations at the Middle/High School," Marlow said.
She turned to Longware, who thought the project would be perfect for her architectural students.
Armed with a project overview and blueprints, students spoke with stakeholders to glean individual needs and wants, centered on themes such as increased natural lighting, improved traffic flow, better utilization of space and increased access to outdoor spaces.
Students spent three months on designs and created final proposals, which they presented to the architectural firm and district administrative team.
Proposals included designs on a senior lounge, secure entrance, library/audio media center, school store, front office and modern cafeteria.
SENIOR LOUNGE
"A lot of starting the project was going around and taking measurements to see what we had to work with," said senior Nathan Stafford.
He and Tennian created a senior lounge with a kitchenette area, increased lighting and separating half wall, as well as an outdoor area with trees, flowers and seating.
"It makes a nice environment for kids to go out and study," Stafford said.
ENTRANCEWAY
Next up, Nicholas Payette and Shawn Ahrens outlined their version of a renovated secure entrance to the Middle/High School. They adjusted it for increased safety and turned the first two classrooms to the right of the entrance into a conference/media room.
They added an office for attendance, seating for people awaiting admittance to the school and two security cameras.
"You can basically see everything coming up to the ramp," Payette said.
LIBRARY
Just inside the school, across the hall, lies the library, another focus of the project.
Alex LaFountain described plans for a library/audio room that featured fewer book shelves, allowing for more space and sofa chairs.
"So a Borders kind of feel is what you are thinking," said AuSable School Superintendent Paul Savage.
Plans call for a raised roof to bring in more natural lighting, something being done in all district buildings.
CAFETERIA
Finally, Calvin LeClair spoke of rearranging lines in the cafeteria with a new entranceway to the serving area, and Ben Prentiss and Kyle Whitney suggested increasing break space and storage areas in the front offices.
"From our point of view, you had some really great ideas," said Matthew Monaghan, a senior principal with SEI design group. "This required a lot of work and research."
Parallels to his firm's preliminary thoughts on the project surprised him.
"It's great to get input from the students because they are here and experiencing the building every day."
sbartlett@pressrepublican.com
