Alarming but unsurprising, Central Campus has begun to crumble. Thankfully, the ceiling collapsed at night, and no one was in the building. To prevent injuries, Central was evacuated and Freshmen students were sent home to learn online for the next few days until the building is safe to enter again. A team of engineers are working on that, so we can hope for an answer soon.

After talking with some fellow students, we have a few questions:

• What is the plan long term for freshmen students?
• Will the plan to renovate Central Campus start during the school year?
• Why weren’t renovations started sooner?
• Will they build an entirely new Freshmen Campus instead of renovating the old one?

East Campus students have expressed concerns about Freshmen joining them at school. It’s already extremely crowded here, and it would be extremely complicated.

Administration has been very transparent with us so far, which is greatly appreciated. Safety must be everyone’s top priority moving forward. If the ceiling fell during the school day, an entire classroom of people could have been seriously injured. Even if it costs a lot of money, keeping our community safe should be the most important thing for everyone. 

Thankfully, the Board made a plan to move the Freshmen to Lincoln Way North because the building has been vacant for a while. So what’s the school day going to look like for the freshmen? But, because it is a long drive from Lincoln Way to East, which means each period will have to be cut 10 minutes short for freshmen. Traveling teachers will also suffer because if they have back to back classes in different buildings, they won’t make it to their next class on time. Even though this is a disadvantage for traveling teachers, keeping all students in person with the least amount of disruptions is a priority. 

Another concern is the students that live in Crest Hill. Their buses will need to get students much earlier in order to get Freshmen to Lincoln Way North on time. It’s about a 40 minute drive from Crest Hill to the new location, and the bus needs to make a stop at East to get the upperclassmen to East Campus. Hopefully the board is considering the bus routes, at least for that designated area. 

Students are also concerned about clubs. A lot of them were held at Central Campus, so they need new locations. Will they be at East campus?

Luckily, Lincoln Way has agreed to partner with us, so the Freshmen will go to Lincoln Way North, and East Campus will stay the same with few disruptions. It seems like the best possible solution in order to keep everyone at school everyday. But it is important for the board to know what the student opinion is, so don’t be afraid to use your voice.