8/27/2018 It’s Not Old School - TownVibe Berkshire - September 2018

Menu More

It’s Not Old School

Taconic’s brand-new high school welcomes students
BY ALEXA BINKOWITZ 0

First day of school.

Homecoming. Pep rallies.
Prom. Graduation. All of
these events tied together
are some of the most
important and formative
moments of a teenager’s
life. Not only are the four
years of high school an
incredibly powerful point in a
young adult’s life, high
school is the place where
friendships, personalities,
passions, and education
cultivate and thrive all under
one roof—unless that roof is
falling apart.

http://www.townvibe.com/Berkshire/September-2018/Its-Not-Old-School/ 1/9
8/27/2018 It’s Not Old School - TownVibe Berkshire - September 2018

Because of this, many high

schools in the United States
have adapted their facilities
to modern technology to
preserve the quality of
instruction for their students.

For one, Taconic High

School in Pittsfield has
undergone a facelift like no
other high school in the
surrounding area— a brand-
new building across from
the old school on Valentine
Road, which will be
demolished and replaced
with new athletic fields.

“It’s just a magnificent

structure; I don’t think
anybody will walk through
the front door and feel like
they’re in a high school,”
says Pittsfield
superintendent Jason
“Jake” McCandless. “It’s
really the first of our
buildings that’s been
designed from the ground
up with what is going to “I don’t think anybody will walk through the front door and feel
maximize student and staff like they’re in a high school,” says Pittsfield superintendent
Jake McCandless.
comfort, morale, and ability
PHOTOS BY GREGORY CHERIN
to teach and learn.”

The academic/vocational secondary school’s new building clocks in at 246,520 square feet and
opens the last week in August, with the first full day of school for all students and teachers on

http://www.townvibe.com/Berkshire/September-2018/Its-Not-Old-School/ 2/9
8/27/2018 It’s Not Old School - TownVibe Berkshire - September 2018

August 30. It features state-of-the-art classrooms and facilities for the 920 students who will be
attending Taconic in the fall. “We’ve already seen an uptick in the kids that want to come to Taconic
from the city of Pittsfield and from outside the city as well. Right now, we have 225 students that will
be entering as freshmen,” says McCandless. Modern education calls for more technological
advancements, which McCandless explains was a huge part of the development of this project.

The school will house 12 vocational

programs by the end of the building’s
second year in operation, which will
feature a cosmetology lab, a full culinary
setup, and an early childhood education
program, as well as computer labs, a
gymnasium, and an auditorium. “There
were several people who said that if we
wanted to be doing the very best that we
could for our students in career and
technical education, we needed the
facilities that would allow that to happen,” says McCandless.

The structure of the building also was designed with safety in mind, especially because of the tragic
events that occurred at other schools around the country over the past few years. However, all of
these features do come at a price, with the total budget for this project totaling about $120 million.
“The Massachusetts School Building Association is paying close to 70 percent of the total cost of
the project,” says McCandless. The city of Pittsfield paid about a third of those costs, up to $45
million.

So far, reactions to the new building have been positive. The school will have a new top
administrator, too—Pittsfield High School Principal Matt Bishop will step into the same role at
Taconic to succeed former Taconic Principal John Vosburgh, who has been hired as superintendent
of Adams-Cheshire Regional School District. Pittsfield’s Vice Principal Henry Duval will serve as
principal there until a permanent replacement is hired.

“We’re incredibly grateful to the city and the state and all the people that made this project possible,”
says McCandless of the new building. “We really are so excited about our students getting to walk
into that building for the first time and realize that their community and their state did this for them.”

http://www.townvibe.com/Berkshire/September-2018/Its-Not-Old-School/ 3/9
8/27/2018 It’s Not Old School - TownVibe Berkshire - September 2018

An Old School

Taconic High School students aren’t the only ones to enjoy that new-school smell. Students at
Mount Greylock Middle/High School will walk into changed surroundings, too, when they return to
school this fall. That includes demolition of its old building, the construction of a three-story
classroom wing, and renovation of existing spaces for the gym, cafeteria, auditorium, and
administrative space.

Meanwhile, their neighbor down south, Monument Mountain Regional High School in Great
Barrington, is still awaiting an approved renovation plan. At over 50 years old, it remains the only
unrenovated school in the area, with ailing ceilings, walls, and old laboratories and resources that are
in need of updating.

Both proposals for renovation budgets, one in 2013 and another in 2014, were rejected. “The high-
school renovation proposal failed twice in Great Barrington,” says Peter Dillon, Superintendent of
Berkshire Hills Regional School District and Shaker Mountain School Union. The physical
degradation of the building also may have a psychological effect on the students, he adds.“From a
climate perspective, the high school is dark and out of date. My concern is that students feel
undervalued and the physical space is uninspiring.”

The key issue is money. Some Great Barrington taxpayers have long held that they pay for the bulk
of the cost for a school that serves a bigger area. The high-school project was unsuccessful because
the plan was too grand, notes Dillon. “This time, we have shifted the assessment formula, are better
articulating a compelling education need, and are trying to better time the project. In addition,
whatever we decide to do will be simpler.”

  The New Steps Committee has been formed to move toward that goal and encourages community
support.  bhrsd.org 

This article appears in the September 2018 issue of TownVibe Berkshire

Did you like what you read here? Subscribe to TownVibe Berkshire »

Add your comment:

http://www.townvibe.com/Berkshire/September-2018/Its-Not-Old-School/ 4/9
8/27/2018 It’s Not Old School - TownVibe Berkshire - September 2018

Characters remaining: 2000

Please enter the letters from the image below:

Audio version (mp3)

Log in and Post Comment

>> Sign up for our newsletter

Connect With Us        

Related Content Archive »

A World of Music
FreshGrass bluegrass and roots festival goes global

Berkshire 25
Most Dedicated, Most Creative, Most Influential for 2018

http://www.townvibe.com/Berkshire/September-2018/Its-Not-Old-School/ 5/9
8/27/2018 It’s Not Old School - TownVibe Berkshire - September 2018

September Song
Creating memories in every corner of their house

Ten Minutes With Berkshire Grown’s Outgoing

Executive Director
Barbara Zheutlin moving on

Be Mindful
Disconnect from devices and reconnect with nature

Real Estate - On the Market

Profiles

http://www.townvibe.com/Berkshire/September-2018/Its-Not-Old-School/ 6/9
8/27/2018 It’s Not Old School - TownVibe Berkshire - September 2018

Your Guides to Leading Local Professionals

Select a Category

townvibe
2,010 likes

Liked Sign Up

You and 1 other friend likes this

August 2018
Today

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

26 27 28 29 30 31 01

10:00 AM - 4:00 PM Lyndhurst Mansion Tours

10:00 AM - 3:15 PM Rockefeller Estate Tours

10:00 AM - 4:00 PM The Culper Ring: The Spies of George Washington

11:00 AM - 4:00 PM Flappers: Fashion and Freedom

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM Afternoon Studios: Creative Calligraphy

3:30 PM Museum Passes from Keeler Library

6:00 PM - 8:00 PM Triple The Fun

Expressionism in Print: The Early Works of Richard Haas, 1957 - 64

MAQUETTE: The Art of the Mode

http://www.townvibe.com/Berkshire/September-2018/Its-Not-Old-School/ 7/9
8/27/2018 It’s Not Old School - TownVibe Berkshire - September 2018

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM Gunn Memorial Library Stairwell Gallery

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Maritime Garage Gallery "A Reverence For Nature" Exhibit

10:00 AM - 9:00 PM Jennifer Sabella "Order & Chaos"

10:30 AM - 5:30 PM "Burn Baby Burn" exhibition opens June 28th

6:00 PM - 7:30 PM Caregiver Support Group

Essex Steam Train & Riverboat Ride

Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All For You and The Actor’s Nightmare

National Geographic Photo Ark

A Continuous Thread: Navajo Weaving Traditions

Search

Category: All

Region

Submit an event » View all listings »

Menu

Magazines
Things To Do
People
Food
Home & Garden
Live
Outdoors
Resources

More

Townvibe
About Us
Advertise
Subscribe

http://www.townvibe.com/Berkshire/September-2018/Its-Not-Old-School/ 8/9
8/27/2018 It’s Not Old School - TownVibe Berkshire - September 2018

Contact Us
My Account

Copyright 2018. All rights reserved.

http://www.townvibe.com/Berkshire/September-2018/Its-Not-Old-School/ 9/9