Early renderings and floor plans of upgrades at Columbia River High School promise new classrooms, improved parking and stadium restorations to the Hazel Dell campus.
But teachers say that comes at the expense of key space for student performances and staff gatherings.
Vancouver voters overwhelmingly approved a $458 million bond measure in 2017, launching a major construction campaign to build new schools and repair old buildings. Construction at Columbia River is slated to begin this summer.
The most significant change is the replacement of the 500 wing, a detached building on the campus’ west side rebuilt and attached to the building by a vestibule. Some spaces inside the main campus will be converted into additional classrooms, increasing the capacity of the 1,200 student school by about 200 students.
At the heart of the existing building is the black box theater. Black boxes in the theater world are often used for smaller, more intimate shows typically marked by an “in-the-round” setting where seats are arranged surrounding the performers rather than in front of a stage. At Columbia River, which has struggled to maintain a consistent drama program, the space has played host to staff and club meetings, as well as student art shows.
But under the new plans, that space will be converted into six classrooms.
“To have that sit for one, two, three, four events a year wasn’t the best value for what we needed to get out of it,” said Todd Horenstein, the district’s assistant superintendent for facilities.
For English and history teacher Tavia Quaid, however, having access to that space was a critical piece of her curriculum. Quaid teaches in the International Baccalaureate program at Columbia River, an advanced program allowing students to pursue college-level coursework while in high school. Quaid said drama performances are a key function of the IB English program, and said the black box was eliminated without staff input.
“No one came back and said ‘due to financial limitations or something, here’s where we are,’ ” she said.
Gwen Thompson Davis, who teaches IB Chemistry, shared similar concerns, saying it’s not fair that Columbia River will be missing spaces that are included at other comprehensive high schools.
“I certainly think our high school deserves a performance space,” Thompson Davis said. “That’s an equity issue between the high schools. I’m certainly not happy about where the process has gone.”
Horenstein pushed back on the idea that there is inequity between the campuses, noting that Columbia River has a band room for small ensemble performances and a commons for larger groups. For more formal settings, groups could use Skyview High School’s auditorium.
“I think they’re pretty equal,” he said.
Teachers had initially approached the district in February with a petition detailing a wider slate of concerns, including the elimination of the school’s dark room for photography classes as well as less space and fewer kilns in the pottery room. Horenstein and teachers’ union Executive Director Rick Wilson noted the district reversed some of those decisions. The dark room is back in the plans, for example, and an additional kiln was added back in the pottery class.
“I appreciate them listening to our members and trying to come up with some solutions,” Wilson said.
Still, Wilson said, the elimination of the black box theater is “tragic.”
“A comprehensive high school like Columbia River without a performance space is like a high school that doesn’t have a field for soccer,” he said. “It’s an integral part of meeting the needs of the students.”
