7 Things To Know As Brick Schools Prepare To Open For 2016-17

BRICK, NJ — When the Brick Township schools open for the 2016-17 school year on Tuesday, parents and students will notice some changes and what officials hope will be some solid improvements for students and staff in the district.

At the Board of Education meeting in late August, Interim Superintendent Thomas Gialanella and the board gave updates on a number of facilities projects that have been under way in the last few months.

Among those projects:

• The parking lot repaving and modifications behind Brick High School and at Lake Riviera Middle School have been completed, removing potholes and creating new traffic flow patterns at the schools; at Lake Riviera those changes are expected to improve the safety for students.
• East Gym renovations are moving along. Board member George White said the bleachers and folding divider panel have been removed and painting was under way. The full renovation should be completed in time for the winter sports season, Gialanella said. Because the project will still be under way when school opens, there will be some disruptions for students and staff, he said. But staff have responded enthusiastically to the renovations and are excited to see the refurbished gym open, he said.
• The project replacing windows at schools in the district is nearly completed and nearly all the rooms that need air conditioning have new units installed, White said. Just a handful of rooms remained to be addressed, he said.
• Window sills at Drum Point Elementary School will be replaced soon, with money from a New Jersey Schools Insurance Group Safety Grant transferred to help cover the cost of the $28,750 project. Board member John Barton said the project came in above the budgeted $20,750, but the work needs to be done immediately.
• Brick Memorial High School will have an additional security officer this year. Gialanella said the decision to add the second officer at that school was in part due to the structure of the building, which makes it difficult for one person to adequately supervise. The officer who has been hired is a retired state trooper who has expertise in working with kids, he said.
• The district's STEM academy programs at both high schools have included a summer camp to prepare students in the program for the coming school year. They will be working on a project that touches multiple subject matters that will be presented publicly at the conclusion of the project.
• The board approved an amended contract for the district's solar panel project, to change the completion date to January 2017. The adjustment was needed because the district increased the size of the project. The increased size is expected to save the district an additional $200,000, for a total of $1,198408, in energy costs.

The rear parking lot at Brick Township High School is ready for the return of students. Photo by Karen Wall