Several changes have taken place over the summer to modify facilities such as the kitchen, strength and fitness center, and administrative offices in order to improve the campus for the upcoming school year.

Facility Manager Mike Bassoni said construction changes include further development of the new Innovation Center, additions to expand the strength and fitness center, and a larger dish station in Manzanita Hall.

Other changes on campus include new offices in Main, the introduction of a deck for performing arts between Dobbins and Manzanita, and a set of bleachers in front of the nurse’s office.

“Some [changes] were just improvements, and some of the stuff that was added on like the deck out back, those [changes] were donations,” said Upper School Maintenance Director J.R. Del Alto.

Innovation Center

What was previously Manzanita’s faculty dining room has become the Innovation Center, where Director of Business and Entrepreneurship Juston Glass will be moving in the upcoming school year because of a series of faculty room changes throughout campus.

“We used the Innovation Center extensively during Harker DECALaunch, our two day in- troduction bootcamp to DECA for incoming members, and it really provides a unique learning experience.” said DECA Director of Technology Alexis Gauba (10).

According to Alexis, the whiteboard walls all around the students encourage innovation, and the furniture arrangement prompts collaboration.

Strength and Fitness Center

The strength and fitness center will be expanded in order to extend the strength and conditioning program to encompass more weights and calisthenic software.

A 3,000 square foot slab of concrete was added to expand the building. Also, offices were added to Main to create more space for incoming faculty because of room changes on campus.

“As far as the new section of offices that we built, those extensions were made so we can make those offices bigger for Kevin Williamson and his secretary,” Del Alto said.

Chowda House

Manzanita will now have two dish rooms inside the building and a new seafood window outside.

The added dish room will continue to promote the wet and dry system introduced during the last school year.

“[The seafood window] is going to be called the Chowda House. The seafood, I think, is going to bring a lot of education because students will be able to go out there and try different types of seafood and soups,” Executive Chef Steve Martin said.

In addition to the seafood, a small room in the Bistro will be allocated for a place where students can create their own sand- wiches.

The second dish room will be similar to the existing one, although Chef Steve’s long-term plan consists of students simply throwing away dry products and the kitchen staff doing the rest.

Outdoor Stage

A new deck, funded by donations, will be added between the Patil Performing Arts build- ing and Dobbins.

This new deck will serve as an outdoor performing arts stage. “It’s nice, but it would be better to have an actual theatre. The stage will be nice for classes to practice on, but you can’t put on an actual show here,” Downbeat member Rishabh Chandra (11) said.

 This piece was originally published in the pages of the Winged Post on August 29, 2014.