The Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) at Leesville completed renovation work in January on the teachers lounge located on the first floor of the main building. Previously, a lone chair sat next to a blank, ugly windowsill. Walls were off-white and depressing, and the tables were small and cramped. The room was not very inviting.
The PTSA decided that renovating the room was a noble goal. “[We wanted] to help the teachers by boosting their morale and giving them something positive to try to encourage them, because North Carolina is one of the least beneficial states to be in as a teacher. We just try to do things to help take care of the teachers when we can.” said Caroline Rohs, vice president of the PTSA.
Chairs and tables were replaced by a larger table and comfy chairs. The boring windowsill now has nice curtains and a couch directly in front of it The PTSA painted all the walls a pleasant green. The shelf was decorated with baskets, and a coffee machine was added.
Most teachers held an unfavorable view of the lounge before the PTSA began work. “I don’t think they were using [the lounge] very much because it was not a very inviting place. They said that if it were a nicer place to be in, that they would actually come in here and sit. So that’s why we decided to fix it up,” Rohs said.
Rohs stated that the project took three or four weeks. The walls were painted immediately after Christmas. Design classes, such as Ms. Blackwelder’s class and Mr. Robinson’s class, made designs for the project. These designs were created around the beginning of 2014, but nothing related to the renovation of the lounge would occur for another year. The PTSA began where those classes had left off.
For a school organization like the PTSA, avoiding frivolous spending is a constant concern. “We were on a tight budget, as the PTSA usually is, but we had two places we could get some money from, and we wanted to keep it under $1000… …We had a former leesville parent donate the curtains. The upholsterer [she motions toward the couch] gave us a discount, and we had volunteers that helped us paint,” said Rohs.
A reception was held for the teachers that included coffee and donuts as they saw the new lounge for the first time. “They all seemed happy, and that [the lounge] was much more comfortable and inviting. They were happy they had a nice place to go when they had a few minutes for a break.”
The sole goal of the PTSA is the betterment of the Leesville community. They will continue to work on improving the school, for both students and teachers.
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