Written by Grace Ding

To address mental health improvement, the administration has provided a revised plan to construct a wellness center, which is currently awaiting complete approval and set to begin construction in June 2016.

The proposed wellness center will be located on the second floor of a new building to replace the Student Activities Center (SAC). The first floor of the building will include classrooms such as computer labs and production spaces, as well as large group meeting areas. The second floor will include the nurse’s office, guidance offices and Adolescent Counseling Services (ACS), and will provide additional services such as yoga and nutrition classes. “The new building in the center of the campus is sort of like the life building in a college campus,” Principal Dr. Denise Herrmann said. “What’s great about the wellness center is it’s a one-stop shop for many of the students’ needs.”

At a school board meeting on Dec. 9, Herrmann presented a revised design for the ongoing Central Building Project, which was presented last school year. “I pointed out that if our school were to be able to deliver a comprehensive service for social, emotional and physical well-being, we had to do redesign work,” Herrmann said. “So the revision we presented to the board is a plan that is very well aligned with the goals set forth by the students, parents and staff.”

Herrmann also believes that another benefit of having these services consolidated in one building is that students will be able to enter and exit without judgement from others. “If you want students not to feel bad about going to ACS, it needs to be in a place where you just go anyhow,” Herrmann said.

The revised plan returned to the school board on Jan. 13 and was subsequently approved. All buildings are set to stay where they are for the rest of the year, and construction on campus is only anticipated to start in the next school year.