Is a Renovation of the Stu Necessary?

By ELLA O'HANLON '21

Although Milton Academy is a beautiful campus, there are still many things that need improvement. That being said, I do not think a renovation of the Student Center should be top priority. Recently at assembly, Mr. Ball displayed pictures of what this renovation would look like. Although there are some English classroom additions which are necessary, most of the changes would be expanding the student center to add more seating. Undoubtedly, this project will cost a lot of money, and I, along with the majority of the students, think renovation is not necessary.

Everyday at recess, the majority of the school goes to the Stu to eat food, hang out with their friends, or simply relax during their 15 minute break between classes. These 15 minutes are the only time when the entire school is in the Stu. Yes, not every single person has a chair to sit in, but these 15 minutes give people time to interact with others they have never talked to. Nonetheless, everyone fits comfortably standing up, so expanding the Stu to add a few couches is simply not necessary.

I sent a survey to the entire school asking whether or not they thought a renovation of the student center was necessary, and 73.3% replied, “No, it is not necessary.” Of these people who answered “No”, I added a second question: what the school could better spend this money on? The most common answers were funding a swimming pool for the swim team, moving the health center closer to campus, and renovating Ware to be more wheelchair accessible. Almost every ISL school has a swimming pool, and it is unfair that the Milton swim team has to drive 30 minutes every day, there and back, just to go to sports practice. The health center is a 4-7 minute walk, and although that distance may not seem like much, if a border gets sick in the middle of the night, a health center of closer proximity would be much more convenient. Lastly, in respect to the renovation of Ware, it is unfair to ask anybody who is injured or Handicapped to ascend four flights of stairs to get to the top of Ware; therefore, we greatly need an elevator.

These are just three of the many suggestions that were submitted. Some other answers included adding air conditioning to all of the buildings, putting in more turf fields, and building a stadium with lights for the football field—all things that in my opinion are very necessary. Seven people thought that the Stu renovation was so preposterous that even a “Very Big Slide” would be a better call! Although this idea may not be very realistic, there are still many ideas that are more necessary. In agreement with me, One person even responded “literally anything” as a better use of this funding.