Guidelines

I am one member of a five person board. The opinions I express on this forum are mine only, and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the Escambia County Staff, Administrators, Employees, or anyone else associated with Escambia County Florida. I am interested in establishing this blog as a means of additional transparency to the public, outreach to the community, and information dissemination to all who choose to look. Feedback is welcome, but because public participation is equally encouraged, appropriate language and decorum is mandatory. Although this is not my campaign site for re-election--sometimes campaign related information will be discussed, therefore in an abundance of caution I add the following : Political Advertisement Paid for and Approved by Jeff Bergosh, Republican, for Escambia County Commissioner District 1








Friday, August 31, 2018

Inside Beulah's New, Ultra-Modern Middle School

Members of the Escambia County School Board and Superintendent Malcolm Thomas prepare to cut the Ribbon at the Grand Opening of Beulah Middle School, 8-30-2018

I was invited to tour the newly opened Beulah Middle School yesterday afternoon for the grand opening ceremony.  Wow-what an amazing place.  This is what the future of a modern school facility is.....today!

Students that attend this school will be treated to an ultra-modern, fully equipped school with all the trimmings:  two stories, huge gymnasium and indoor rec area, Ag. sciences center, running track, outdoor basketball courts, ultra modern home economics classes, science laboratories ( complete with eight (8) 3D printers), a robotics lab, business/computer classrooms--and the music department--THREE (3) complete band rooms with risers in the music suite, one dedicated each for chorus, orchestra, and band.

The cafeteria will double as an auditorium and the
gymnasium is incredible

During the ceremony before the tour, the assembled audience of school district officials and other invited guests heard from the architect that designed this beautiful facility, and from the builder that built it.




The facility is energy efficient and was designed to maximize natural lighting.  Additionally, the lighting is all LED, which will result in lower electric costs going forward.  Although most specifics on security were not discussed, some of the security attributes were highlighted.  The school has more CCTV cameras than any other school in the district--200 of them.  They are positioned throughout the schools and many of the classrooms have cameras.  (I found this ironic, as during my tenure on the school board I advocated strongly and on multiple occasions for the installation of cameras in the classrooms of our schools to monitor discipline issues---and this idea was flatly poh-poohed every time I brought it.  But now they are doing it!  Better late than never I guess....)  "We were able to already use one of the classroom cameras to determine who it was that defaced a piece of school property" said Assistant Principal Marietta McCaskill when I asked her about who monitors the feed and if there is a recording of the camera footage.

There are bollards around the entrance to protect from a vehicle attack, and there is reinforced security fencing outside of the classrooms that protects students in the outdoor areas adjacent to the classrooms.  The fencing looks to be INCREDIBLY stout.  at the front entrance, visitors are segregated in an enclosed and access controlled vestibule--preventing any unauthorized entry into the main campus.

Mrs. McCaskill led us on a tour of the entire facility--and I must say it was impressive.  Designed for 1200 students, the current enrollment stands at 829 according to Mrs. McCaskill.  "We are staffed for 649 at the moment, but we will soon be getting two more teachers-and that will be good." she stated.

I appreciated the opportunity to tour this facility--I'm proud to have my name on the plaque.  I'm
excited for the students and families that will be served by this school and I wish the district much success with this school---even though I voted against a middle school being constructed out here when I was on the board as I felt Beulah needed a second elementary school or a K-8 facility to alleviate the MASSIVELY overcrowded Beulah Elementary School.

But I lost that vote and the board moved forward with the middle school.

And the middle school they built is nothing short of amazing!

2 comments:

Mel Pino said...

Wow--what an impressive facility. 8 3-D printers? and a robotics lab? That is fantastic. Seems like this is just the right kind of institution to get great partnerships rolling with local job training and crafts/construction mentoring. Does it have an industrial arts and mechanics facility also?

Jeff Bergosh said...

Melissa,

It is an incredibly amazing facility---it may very well have an industrial arts and mechanics facility also--didn't see those specifically. It had an incredible science/robotics lab with the 3D printers and lots of working spaces, inside and outside. This facility has the technology infused throughout. The students who are fortunate enough to attend this school, if they apply themselves and take advantage of the opportunities presented, will have the opportunity to learn in one of the most innovative, modern and well-equipped middle schools in the country--right here in Beulah! I'm happy for the students and parents that have this opportunity (even though I still think an elementary school at this site is what was desperately needed--not another Middle School, as our school population is declining, not increasing with the overall general population of Escambia County) But if growth does come to the middle schools-now we have much excess capacity

Political Advertisement Paid For and Approved by Jeff Bergosh, Republican for Escambia Commission D1