After being in construction since fall of 2022, the new Walpole Middle has opened up for the 2024-2025 school year. Completed at the end of August just in time for the start of the school year, the building combines the two former middle schools, Bird Middle School and Eleanor N. Johnson Middle School. The opening of the school building is the culmination of months of construction as well as efforts by each of the individual middle schools to transition into one joint school.
“It’s like a blended family where we are starting to come together and it’s just taking some time,” art teacher Madison Langwell said.
The school is divided into three levels. Eighth grade students are on the top level, seventh grade students are in the middle level and sixth grade students are on the bottom. Additionally, the school has wings divided by color rather than subject wings. Each student is assigned a color and they are expected to stay in that area for their classes.
“Each level has a different color that corresponds to each class so you don’t have to travel a lot unless you’re going to a special,” seventh grade student Georgie Barry said.
Although the students are unable to see friends from other colors, they still find ways to hangout during the school day through specials like gym, art, health and music and the opportunity to have lunch together.
Teachers and students are in the process of adjusting to their new work and learning environment, as the staff members and students are working together in the same building for the first time.
“People have different ways of doing things, [so you] don’t assume that everyone knows how to do something,” science teacher Jennifer Morrell said. “We all came from different places.”
One aspect of the new building that the school community appreciates is the large windows that bring a lot of natural light into the school. These windows help make the space feel brighter and also give people a pleasant view of the surrounding neighborhood.
“Being able to see outside the windows is a big part of [making the learning environment better],” former seventh grade social studies teacher Lisa Goldman said. “In 19 years I could never see outside my windows.”
Their biggest improvements are safety and security. In every classroom and office, there are automatic locking doors that can only open on the inside, or when a keycard is used. They also have cameras all around the school. The building also has won-doors in the hallway that come out of the wall and stop any fires from spreading around the building by sectioning the hallways. Also in the science classrooms, they have gotten better safety showers and eye-wash stations.
Despite the challenges of merging two schools, the students and staff are looking forward to Walpole Middle School’s first year.
