I hope everyone has had a fantastic start to the new school year!
As returning students and parents know, we have been on a multi-year journey to raise funds for the renovation of our 1953 era theatre. Over the past five years, the school community has raised $75,000 to improve the lighting, $45,000 to upgrade our sound system and last year, we raised $90,000 towards the replacement of the chairs in the theatre. The money to replace the chairs was raised through the sponsorship of individual chairs, (which can still be made online!) and through our show at the Winter Garden Theatre, Shine: An Evening Celebrating ESA. We are still below our goal, but the project is moving ahead with the hope that we are able to raise the final amount through fundraising and the school’s budget.
I met with the Board architect last week and, as I said last school year, our plan is to have the work done over the coming summer once all final Board approvals have gone through. (Our school’s incredibly busy schedule would not allow us to do this work during the school year). Once we get the final approval for the total job, this project will include significant repairs to the ceiling in the theatre, as well as repairs to the floor and the creation of better seating areas for people using wheelchairs and other assistive devices.
As always, please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about this project or any other school-related issues. Rob.MacKinnon@tdsb.on.ca or 416-394-6910.