Vaishali Patel
The Union-Recorder
MILLEDGEVILLE —
More than 600 John Milledge Academy teachers and students signed an I-beam earlier this week to leave their mark on the school’s new upcoming multi-purpose facility.
Development Director Jason Miller said the Trojan Center is just one of many investments JMA will make in its programs, people and facilities, making the facility beneficial to all present and future students.
The Trojan Center will provide students, faculty, families and friends an expanded and air-conditioned space to simultaneously accommodate and support current athletic teams for all age groups, a new gymnasium for basketball teams, improved male and female locker room facilities, faculty offices, a concession stand, dining areas and a performance area for the drama club, literary team and music department. Miller said retractable bleachers will seat 700 people, with the capacity of additional seating during graduation.
“The facility will allow students to play and practice basketball, have one-act plays, have P.E. classes and have kindergarten and high school graduation on campus,” Miller said. “We had to have kids in basketball teams go to an off-campus site to practice because we didn’t have enough space. With the completion of this facility, that will be eliminated.”
According to the JMA Web site, the projected cost of construction was close to $1.9 million when the project was considered in 2007. The expenditure has decreased to $1.5 million for the new 20,824 square foot building. Miller said JMA is running a capital campaign to fund the Trojan Center over a period of three years.
With a goal of reaching $1 million, JMA has received more than $300,000 in pledges and gifts for the “Join Me, Growing in Excellence Together” campaign.
“The board of trustees had the idea to build the new facility before I came four years ago. There’s a saying that says, ‘if you’re not growing, you’re dying.’” Miller said. “This is a way to continue enhancing our technology and continue making John Milledge a better place for students and families to be part of. We would like people to continue donating to [our campaign] every year [because] we’re mainly funded through donations by families and local businesses. It’s going to take everybody.”
With an estimated mid-July completion date, concrete has already been laid and beams are in the process of going up on the project.
“Even though it’s raining, there’s a lot of work [Dublin Construction] can still do,” said Miller of the recent rains. “Even with this facility, we know that classroom and technology are also a big initiative for the school. We want to make sure all the kids have all of the necessary items they need to make themselves successful.”
For more information about JMA the new Trojan Center, call the school at (478) 452-5570 or visit www.johnmilledge.org.
