By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
The arts in the St. Joseph School District gets some badly needed upgrades.
The St. Joseph Board of Education has approved spending $3.2 million for improvements to the fine and performing arts, money funded through the $20 million bond issue approved by voters in April.
St. Joseph Superintendent Gabe Edgar says it all is long overdue.
“So, a lot of those were internal. A lot of those were replacement of instruments and those types of things and then, the rest of it was upgrades to the facilities,” Edgar tells host Barry Birr on the KFEQ Hotline. “So I do know that they’re going to upgrade the stages at the high schools, for instances. So, all the stages are going to be brand new at Central, Lafayette, and Benton.”
Edgar says many of the instruments used by band members date back to the 1990s, even 1980s. The Fine Arts and Performing Arts programs have suffered from a lack of funding for years, according to Edgar.
As part of the expenditures, the St. Joseph Board of Education has approved a $1.5 million contract with Lawhon Construction of St. Joseph to make improvement to the stages at Central, Lafayette, and Benton High Schools. Improvements will not only include replacing the stages, but also installing modern lighting and sound systems. Even such miscellaneous aspects, such as curtains, will be replaced.
Edgar is hopeful these improvements will prove long lasting.
“I’ll be honest with you, it was just stuff that needed to be taken care of and I think as long as we take a proactive approach of staying ahead of the game moving forward, then the Fine Arts Department won’t be in that position again,” Edgar says.
It is already making an impact.
School Board Vice President Mike Moore says the board heard from students during a recent St. Joseph School District Foundation breakfast.
“The student talked about trying to sing, perform chorally with a rather inexpensive electronic keyboard and compare that to what he’s got now with the grand piano and he said it’s an unbelievable difference,” Moore tells Birr during his KFEQ Hotline appearance alongside Edgar. “Kids are excited and that’s what it’s all about.”
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