By KATH GANNAWAY
YARRA Junction student Baylin will be happy to see the end of the “stinky, hot, annoying” portables he has had the displeasure of learning in in recent years.
The announcement last week that the school was allocated $2million in the State Budget to upgrade classrooms and build a new art room was met with cheers and applause at the school assembly on Monday morning.
With both Liberal and Labor coming on board last year with election promises to fund the much-lobbied-for upgrade, the school had only to wait for this budget.
In the end, it will be Labor that unveils the plaque when students move into four new classrooms and unleash their creativity in the new art room.
The office of Education Minister and Deputy Leader, James Merlino, confirmed to the Mail last week that the total $2M has been allocated in the 2015-’16 budget as part of a $730 million education infrastructure package for Victoria.
School council president Brian Westlake said it was great news.
“If we get the full amount, we can have picks and shovels going by August,” he said following the announcement.
He said it had been a long battle which was ramped up in the lead-up to the election after years of concern about the state of buildings and unsuccessful attempts to get funding.
“The foundations of the portables started to subside almost immediately they were put in and when we got to the stage where the art room was condemned, and then the kids play area as well, we started lobbying from our first (school) council meeting in 2014,” Mr Westlake said.
“We lobbied both parties, and to their credit we got a great hearing from them both.
“I felt all the pollies on both sides worked hard, haven’t swept us under the carpet after the election, and we now have this funding, as promised.”
Our school will become absolute top quality for the next 30 years and it’s really going to change the whole aspect of the school.
“Academically, the school performs very highly at a state level and the infrastructure will
now match the quality of education.
Principal Chris Thomas had the enjoyable task of letting the students know that while there might be a little pain in the short-term, the gain would be well worth the wait.
“You will see lots of workmen coming around the school in the next three months for all the planning, then we will get rid of the portables and start on the new classrooms,” he said to huge applause.
Mr Thomas said everyone at the school was “over the moon” and looking forward to starting the planning process with a meeting scheduled this week.
“It was a real community effort last year to get the $2million and without such a strong community, we would not have been successful,” he said.
“We start planning next week and from there hope to be building late this year and moving in around late 2016 or early in 2017.”
