To the Editor:
I was on the tour of the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School (MVRHS) facility as an observer several weeks ago. My personal opinion is that the condition of the physical plant is appalling.
The former principal is gone; whomever else had the responsibility and authority for monitoring and addressing the glaring issues should be asked to “pursue his excellence elsewhere.” I’d also suggest that there needs to be a comprehensive review of the issues resulting in a report prioritizing problem items by safety and cost. This report needs to be presented to each town and its voters and all should be encouraged to take their own tour and see the condition of the school in the daylight (not at night when much of this goes unnoticed due to lighting).
Further, large committees are useful at idea generation, but less effective at execution. I would suggest that we need a full-time Project Manager with a civil engineering background who can monitor the building, reconstruction, project components and systems from initial engineering through the life of the systems. It seems that we need an integrated and continual approach to this issue. We need to provide funding not just for the project components, but for maintenance over time. And we need to install systems that Vineyard contractors and suppliers can support. I’d further note that there are a number of Island school buildings that need similar attention. It may be that the cost of a full-time project manager might be shared if appropriate.
James Malkin
Chilmark