THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, September 2, 1996 TAG: 9609020040
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SERIES: Back to School
SOURCE: BY JON GLASS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 78 lines
The old Wrigley's chewing gum commercial about doubling your pleasure and fun doesn't apply to high schools. Just ask Granby High School Principal Michael J. Caprio.
As most principals across Hampton Roads scramble to ready only one school for Tuesday's back-to-school opening, Caprio and his teaching staff are contending with two.
To make room for the expansion and renovation of the 57-year-old Granby High, school officials will house about 1,100 ninth- and 10th-graders in the former Norfolk Catholic High School building about a half-mile away. It has been tagged ``Granby 2,'' and will be used during the two years of work on the $21-million-plus construction project.
About 607 juniors and seniors will stay put at ``Granby 1.''
``That means double everything - schedules, busing, orientation, lunches - everything's just multiplied by two, and I'm not a math whiz,'' Caprio said Friday as teachers wrapped up final preparations and hoped for the best.
``We have no choice - we're ready,'' said a work-weary Cynthia Watson, one of two assistant principals at Granby 2.
The School Board in July began paying a monthly lease of $14,344 to the owner of the building, DePaul Medical Center, to use it.
Summer has been a hectic race to Tuesday's finish line. The move into Granby 2 began in mid-June, a laborious hauling of desks, file cabinets and books.
``It took a solid three days of moving, and we've spent the rest of the time arranging classrooms and repairing things,'' Watson said.
The nearly 50-year-old two-story brick building has been vacant since Catholic High moved to Virginia Beach in 1993. Getting it into shape to suit Granby's needs has been a chore, Watson said.
``We had to divide the library in half to make space for two classes, and we've been tearing down walls,'' Watson said. ``It's been a total restructuring process.''
And there were a few secular adjustments to make: A large crucifix on the front of the building was covered with a plywood box, while a few religious objects, including a statue of the Blessed Mother, were removed.
On Friday, construction workers labored noisily to finish a drain field, and signs warning of wet paint still adorned hallway doors.
But for the most part, classes, equipped with televisions, overhead projectors and American flags, looked ready. Some teachers had put up bulletin board displays and brought in plants for a homey look.
``It's been a lot of hard work, but everybody's going with the flow,'' said Beth Staples, a secretary in Granby 2's media center.
Parents and students who toured the building Friday were impressed.
``I think they're going to do well here,'' parent Muriel Brewer said. ``It's clean, it's neat, it's ready.''
``It looks good,'' added her son, Matt Mayo, a ninth-grader.
Parent Sue Sanderson, who accompanied her 10th-grade daughter Kate, said: ``They've tried to anticipate all the difficulties, and I think it's worked out really well so far.''
Granby 1 and 2 are six-tenths of a mile apart on Granby Street. ``Exactly,'' said Caprio, who has walked the distance. A shuttle bus will run between the two buildings during the day to accommodate students and teachers. And because of its small lunchroom, Granby 2 will operate three lunch periods, instead of the typical two.
But despite such headaches, the move into the former Catholic school has been a nostalgic homecoming for Caprio. He is a graduate of Catholic High's Class of 1962.
``I went back to the lockers and the gym and it still smells the same,'' Caprio said. ``I walked into the principal's office and I had an eerie feeling. My old principal would turn over in his grave if he knew I was taking over his school. But what a neat thing to be principal of your old high school.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by BETH BERGMAN/The Virginian-Pilot
Michael J. Caprio, principal of Granby High School, sits in a
window of the old Norfolk Catholic High School, which will house
ninth- and 10th-grade Granby High students until renovations are
complete at Granby.
KEYWORDS: GRANBY HIGH SCHOOL RENOVATIONS
by CNB