Work to start on Southern High auditorium

by Krystal Paco

Guam - It's a $100 million school that's been rotting away for almost a decade.  Broken glass, walls covered in spider webs, and a termite-infested stage. That's what's become of the thousand-seat Southern High School auditorium that's been rotting away for the last seven years due to broken air conditioning.

Last week Governor Eddie Calvo signed a $3.6 million contract that will be paid by American Reinvestment and Recovery Act money to renovate the site. According to Department of Education superintendent Jon Fernandez, come this time next year, the stage will be set for use by students, members of the community, and art patrons. "If you walk through you'll understand that this is not just a high school auditorium it's not just a high school facility but I think it's something that can benefit the broader island community," he said. "We're really committed to starting these discussions today now before the work really gets going about what that plan is and how we might utilize the opportunity to involve the broader community to support our arts community for instance."

Next on the Southern High to-do list is the gym. Fernandez says the contract for repairs, which will also be funded through ARRA, is still under review at DOE Central. Once it gets approved, it will be sent to the Attorney General's Office for review, before the final signoff from the governor.

As for the school's pool, Fernandez says that will have to wait. "This is a piece that's not yet addressed. We've brought estimates but we got to think a little more whether a pool is the right investment right now. It's going to be to fix it and then to maintain it and then liability that comes with having a pool on campus," he explained.

Southern High principal James Petite is happy to finally see work done to his Santa Rita school, once coined the "Jewel of the South" when it first opened its doors back in 1997. "These kids have not had full access to their campus how tragic is it for young people to not be able to play a home game for basketball or volleyball in their gym. I think they've done a good job sports-wise, but I think with the superintendent here pushing the issue with that gym these kids are going to see some good changes," he said.

Fernandez added, "I think it's more than just fixing the facility I think we really need to send a signal to our students that not only are we trying to get them to succeed, but we're going to do what we can to make their environment much more positive and hopefully this is a starting point."