Every Child S Success Is Our Mission

GREENFIELD PUBLIC SCHOOLS

141 Davis Street, Greenfield, MA 01301

“Every Child’s Success is Our Mission”

Ph: 413-772-1310 / Fax: 413-772-1379 Jordana B. Harper, Superintendent of Schools

10/30/15

Good Afternoon,

What is so powerful about education is that it endures. Every teacher knows that the result of the hard work, endless hours of dedication, papers graded and relationships built with students, will not come immediately. Students do not return the next day and say “thank you for that homework assignment.” Instead, the results come years, sometimes a decade or perhaps two, later, when a student returns to say “you made a difference in my life. Thank you for believing in me, challenging me, and inspiring me.”

In this magnificent new building, it is quite possible, and very tangible even, to see that what we do today, will have an enduring impact on so many students’ lives for so many years to come. Greenfield, as the seat of Franklin County, is lucky to have this state of the art facility for our students to learn in, today.

So it is in that spirit that I would like to thank the past and present members of the School Committee, High School Building Committee, and Town Council, Mass School Building Authority, local and state representatives, including Senate President Rosenberg and State Represent Paul Mark, present here today, and of course the cooperation of the construction team – including Shawmut Construction, Construction Monitoring Services, and Dore & Whittier architects, along with Town Departments. I would also like to thank past and present supporters of public education in Greenfield, including the teachers, families, administrators, and of course students who breathe life into the walls and halls that we are standing in today – for believing in the enduring legacy of education, and for championing and investing in the success of our students. I would like to begin by thanking all those that made this possible.

As Superintendent, it is my honor and pleasure to celebrate today’s Ribbon Cutting for the new high school, ushering in a new age of opportunities for our students. Greenfield Public Schools students are academically prepared, active in athletics, engaged in service to their community, and among some of the most thoughtful, creative, and artistic young people in the state of Massachusetts. Today, they can take advantage of a high school that matches their potential, and will help catapult them to greatness.

They can learn not just about science and technology from textbooks, they can study and build on advances in renewable and sustainable energy through the many energy efficient features in their own high school, such as energy recapture lighting, rain water catch basins, a permaculture garden in the new Science wing, and solar panels to be installed on the roof.

Our student athletes can enjoy basketball and volleyball games in our brand new gymnasium, and will soon have the ability to host regional track meets with our new 8-lane outdoor track, drawing well deserved attention to our district’s fee-free athletics program and accomplished student athletes.

Our library can be filled not just with books but with technology, conversation, and community, through the use of maker space projects, and light-filled spaces where students collaborate as a community of scholars.

Musicians and actors can grace the stage of our completely renovated auditorium, students can edit films in the digital labs and create works of practical value in our completely updated woodshop, while artists create works of stunning beauty in pottery or art class.

Most importantly, our students can learn every day in classrooms that demonstrate the belief that a community is as strong as its schools. Modern, spacious learning environments replace the dark, low rooms that many remember from the old GHS.

And while our teachers have always been just as dedicated, our students just as hard-working, and our administrators, custodians, cafeteria works, secretaries and coaches as willing to go the extra mile to do what’s best for our kids – the grand opening of this building marks a momentous occasion, that reminds all of us of the power and potential, and the enduring legacy, of education. Therefore it is my deepest honor to dedicate this building today to the students and community of Greenfield.

Thank you.

The Greenfield Public Schools is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, sex, marital status, race, color, creed, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, ancestry, genetic information or military service. The Greenfield Public Schools maintain a commitment to ensuring that the school community is free from discrimination in education and employment.