Built in 1960, many of the facilities at Santa Clara High School have needed improvements over the last couple decades. Within sports facilities and classrooms alike, many changes have been made with the hopes that more students will be excited about their campus.
A staff member since 1999, Principal Gregory Shelby hopes that SCHS will become the center of students’ lives through improvements to the campus.
“We (the administration) want this to be a hub of activity in the community for students inside and outside the classroom,” Shelby said. “We’re also hoping to do some significant upgrades of technology in the classroom. While it’s vastly better than it was 10 years ago, there’s a lot of things we could do to improve.”
From an athletic standpoint, physical education teacher Brett Hall believes that newer facilities will help grow the sport programs on campus. Hall is excited for the prospect of new lighting on the pool deck and back fields.
“If we’re able to house games here at night with the lights and have baseball, football, water polo or swimming at different times of the day, where people would be excited to come and cheer on their school, that would be amazing,” Hall said.
Over the past 20 years, five bonds have been passed. With this money, Shelby explained that many facilities, including the classrooms, were improved, a dramatic change compared to his teaching days on campus.
“There was no air conditioning. In fact, there were metal walls,” Shelby said. “So if you were seated here on the south side, the rooms were so hot it was unbearable. It was all that and yet there was no technology. It was just loud. It was hot. It was uncomfortable.”
As classrooms improved, Shelby noticed a significant improvement in students behavior. He attributes this progress to better facilities.
“We want our students to feel like they belong to some place that cares about them and respects them. That they have a place where they want to be,” Shelby said.
At the district level, Director of Facility Development and Planning Michal Healy explained that the newer buildings have to be in compliance with Collaborative for High Performance Schools, a standard that regulates the learning environments in schools throughout California. Additionally, SCUSD has other aspects of a campus they prioritize.
“Our number one priority is doing things that would benefit and improve the safety for the students, and then after that, it’s the needs of the educational services,” Healy said.
According to Healy, SCUSD is often looking to build facilities that will promote a more modern curriculum. On campus, Shelby is excited about the proposed upgrades to the culinary space. He explained that there are plans to change the homestyle kitchen into an industrial one with hopes that students will learn how to be chefs in a similar environment.
Over the past several years, Shelby has shifted his focus toward teacher collaboration. In the future, he looks to convert the old computer labs behind the library into the faculty lounge in hopes that the space will become an area where teachers can collaborate, similar to the science wing.
“I love going in (to the science building) and just seeing the science teachers working together, talking together, being part of each other’s lives professionally and just as friends,” Shelby said. “We want to make that much more of the norm for everyone else by making a faculty lounge as much more accessible for everybody.”
Although students will only spend four years on campus, Shelby’s focus is shifted toward creating a campus that welcomes Bruins for years to come.
“I’m trying to build a school for your little brothers and little sisters, and even a school for your kids,” Shelby said.