Students Spruce Up Long-Closed Drury High CourtyardBy Jack Guerino, iBerkshires Staff
05:40PM / Wednesday, June 08, 2016 | |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Drury High School students will, for the first time in a long time, be able to use the school's courtyard thanks to a recent service learning project.
For at least the past 10 years, Drury students have looked longingly at the locked-up courtyard and dreamed of the convenient passage through the building and a little sunlight between classes.
However, thanks to Melanie Rancourt's math class and Michelle Darling's academic success class, students will be able to pass through.
"To be honest it looked like crap and we made it look like something," said student Emily Eichorn.
Rancourt said the recent "lip dub" video passed through the neglected courtyard, and many commented on how much it had deteriorated.
"The 2016 lip dub went through the courtyard and that was a couple of weeks before we had decided on the project," she said. "A couple of kids thought something should be done ... so we did it."
Rancourt passed this idea on to sophomore Amy Jennings, who needed an idea for a project for her DTV (Drury TV) class.
"I didn't know what my project was going to be so I came to Mrs. Rancourt for an opinion because I had nothing, so she gave me a good idea," Jennings said.
Jennings filmed the monthlong process that started in May for her DTV project.
Rancourt said the classes secured $300 from a Community Service Learning mini-grant and they went from there.
"We kind of just budgeted it, which worked being a math class," Rancourt said. "We figured out how much the materials were going to be and as a class we decided how much we could purchase."
The 15 students pulled weeds, planted flowers, laid stone for the walkway, and spread mulch to keep away the ever so annoying weeds the classes had spent weeks pulling up.
Principal Amy Meehan said there were more learning opportunities within the project and that students had to present the project to her, director of buildings and grounds Matt Neville, and Assistant Principal Tim Callahan.
"They were able to work on presentation skills, and we got to ask them questions," Meehan said.
Service Learning Coordinator Anne French said there have been attempts to clean up the courtyard in the past, but without constant maintenance it became overgrown.
Rancourt is confident the school can keep up the courtyard and use it for years to come. She said next year, they have their eyes set on a picnic table.
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