Today, all 900-something occupants of Aquinas were summoned to the beautiful, still-relatively-new auditorium for an important announcement. Every year, Mr. Sadler (the principal) gives a "State of the School" (yes it is a bad play off of State of the Union) address. This year, it was the president of the Board of Trustees, Mr. Daley, who made the announcement that Nazareth will be "merging" with Aquinas. They will open a Pre-K through 6, while 7-12 will be in the Aquinas school building.
Apparently, it's been in the works for a long time. As a student, I can promise I didn't see it coming. To be quite honest, I don't want it to happen. Where are we going to fit 200 more students? Yes, I understand that most of them are girls. *glares at boys in homeroom* No, you may NOT store them there. I'm being serious, though--with the addition of the junior high two years ago (affectionately deemed the "munchkins" or "little ones" or "small ones" or "children" or any other diminutive title able to be thought up by high school students), the traffic flow in the school has been drastically changed and the second floor, always busy, is even more congested than ever. If 200 students join our ranks, we're going to need five minutes' passing time instead of four.
Here's me posting my support to figure out how to keep Naz afloat. They deserve to have their own school.
(P.S.: Come see "A Raisin In the Sun," February 4-7! Thursday through Saturday, the show begins at 7:30 pm, while the Sunday matinee begins at 2 pm. Tickets are $10 a person or $8 for students and seniors.)
Apparently, it's been in the works for a long time. As a student, I can promise I didn't see it coming. To be quite honest, I don't want it to happen. Where are we going to fit 200 more students? Yes, I understand that most of them are girls. *glares at boys in homeroom* No, you may NOT store them there. I'm being serious, though--with the addition of the junior high two years ago (affectionately deemed the "munchkins" or "little ones" or "small ones" or "children" or any other diminutive title able to be thought up by high school students), the traffic flow in the school has been drastically changed and the second floor, always busy, is even more congested than ever. If 200 students join our ranks, we're going to need five minutes' passing time instead of four.
Here's me posting my support to figure out how to keep Naz afloat. They deserve to have their own school.
(P.S.: Come see "A Raisin In the Sun," February 4-7! Thursday through Saturday, the show begins at 7:30 pm, while the Sunday matinee begins at 2 pm. Tickets are $10 a person or $8 for students and seniors.)
6 comments:
"If 200 students join our ranks, we're going to need five minutes' passing time instead of four."
Aww, Ink, you guys have it easy!
Back in the good old days (don't you just love it when a senior citizen starts a sentence with that phrase?) we packed about 1,400 kids into that building and still managed to change classes in just 3 minutes. Yes, it was crowded but everyone quickly learned just how to insert themselves into the traffic stream to get where they were going.
Of course, a freshmen heading for the 2nd floor would occasionally make the mistake of getting into the inside lane on a stair case and find himself being swept past the 2nd floor door by a group of upper classmen intent on teaching him the rules of the road, but that usually happened only during the first few days of school.
They are not "opening" a pre-K through 6, it already exists as Nazareth Hall. Nazareth Middle School and Nazareth Academy are merging with Aquinas. Your numbers will not change drastically. 200 students spread over 6 grades is roughly 35 to 40 per grade. And this is if all students transfer which will not be the case and if all current AI students remain which will not be the case. You will be able to handle the increase easily.
Anon: my mom actually informed me of that after I posted it. However, that was the impression which has been given to us as the student body, and I felt no need to edit to change it.
Mike: You guys had the McDonald's-M/arch stairs thing, though, right? Our ~silly little munchkins~ have taken over half the 3rd floor, effectively killing the traffic flow. God forbid anyone try to bypass the 2nd floor these days.
"You guys had the McDonald's-M/arch stairs thing, though, right?"
If you're talking about the scalloped stair treads, yes. I remember my dad (AQ '30) commenting on the wear they were showing when he took me in for registration.
One summer during my time at AQ - I think it was either 1959 or 1960 - a crew came in and turned all those marble slabs over and the following fall we were greeted with absolutely flat treads.
The scalloping you currently see (or, to be more precise, the scalloping that was visible in the fall of '06 - the last time I was in the building) all dates from about 1960.
Ink,
FWIW, there are some interesting tidbits about the early history of AQ in Fr. Hugh Haffey's account of the founding of St. John Fisher College.
For instance, did you know that at one time AQ had freshman classes numbering some 500 students and was graduating 400 seniors per year?
See here.
Actually, I was referring to the traffic flow of the "McDonald's M." Outside stairs go up, inside stairs go down... or they DID. No more, I'm afraid. Hence why the second floor is awfully squished.
I wish we could grow that big! Maybe then we'd be doing something right...
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