The renovation of Dumbarton Middle School is scheduled to begin this month, according officials of Baltimore County Public Schools.
The $28 million upgrade, which is scheduled to be completed by April 2018, will include installation of a central air conditioning system, a new elevator, upgrades to plumbing, and security improvements, among other items. The school also is scheduled to receive an improved health suite, improved art classrooms, music classrooms, gym activity rooms, computer labs and administrative offices.
Officials also will construct a "maker room" in the media center, said Pete Dixit, the school system's Director of Physical Facilities. The room "provides a place for kids to be able to tinker with ideas and just be creative in everything they're doing," Dixit said, adding that school staff will decide which tools and supplies will be available to students in the space.
Dumbarton Middle School was constructed in 1956 and occupies a 20.4-acre site, according to 2014 system-wide facilities audit. The audit found a number of problems with the school, including a lack of air conditioning, underuse of core areas, and materials and finishes worn by age.
While construction on the school is occurring during the next two school years, students will be phased in and out of the building, according to Dixit. Students will leave one part of the building, be placed in a portable building while work is done, and then move back into the renovated section upon its completion.
School officials plan to regularly update the system's website, www.bcps.org, with information on the project to keep parents informed, Dixit said.
Last year, members the Rodger's Forge Community Association shared with school officials concerns about a proposed renovation plan that included exterior changes they said would negatively alter the school's appearance. That plan, which has since been amended, called for the removal of nine old trees. The trees will stay.
"We strategically worked with the community to make sure the school system's needs and the community's needs were met," Baltimore County Public Schools Superintendent Dallas Dance said May 26, adding that school officials will try to minimize community disruption during the renovation.
The renovation will correct a problem at Dumbarton that has proven controversial systemwide — a lack of air conditioning.
For Aimee Freeman, Dumbarton's Parent Teacher Student Association President, the new central air conditioning isn't coming soon enough. The renovation is scheduled to be complete just months before her son will leave Dumbarton.
"I think that it's a shame that in this day and age, in 2016, that so many of the schools in Baltimore County are not air conditioned," she said. "I think that's a basic right of every child."
She added that the administration at Dumbarton Middle School has done a good job of keeping parents informed about the project.
Baltimore County Councilman David Marks, who represents Towson and the area around Dumbarton Middle, said he is encouraging school officials to conduct an open house this summer so residents can ask questions they might have about the project's progress.
"It's an outstanding school but it has these lingering facilities issues," Marks said. "With state and county funding we're going to make it a 21st century school."