A NEW OUTLOOK
Clairton City schools show off renovations after volunteers revamp district building
Last school year was already going to be challenging enough for the Clairton City School District because of the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.
Then in late September, a water pipe burst and flooded the boiler room and the first floor of the Clairton Education Center, the building that houses all of the district’s students.
The flooding not only caused a mess but also rendered a large portion of the school useless and forced the district to rely more heavily on remote instruction than it had planned on. But the district didn’t have to look far for help.
Pennsylvania American Water cleaned and repaired the first floor of the education center, and employees from U.S. Steel volunteered to renovate the top two floors even though neither were damaged by the flooding. The overhaul of hallways, gymnasiums, libraries, office space and other areas was the first major physical work done to the building in 30 years, according to school officials.
“I think it gives [students] a sense of pride,” Superintendent Ginny Hunt said Wednesday while leading a tour of the newly renovated school.
The renovations done to the first floor of the building — where the K-5 classes are held — were completed before the end of the 2020-21 school year, meaning elementary students saw how their space was updated before going on summer break. The work on the top two floors of the building — where middle and high school students have their classes — occurred over the summer and will be totally new to the
students when they come back.
Renovations to the second and third floors of the school were not guaranteed because the flooding did not affect those areas. But Ms. Hunt wanted to find a way for the whole building to be revamped, so she turned to U.S. Steel, which has a massive presence in Clairton.
“I said our middle/high school really, really needs work,” Ms. Hunt said she told U.S. Steel officials. “The walls need painted and repaired, our library is outdated, [and] our gymnasium hasn’t been painted for a long time. So if you guys would really like to help us out, we want to provide a nice, clean, updated learning environment for all our students — not just our elementary students.”
Michael Rhoads, U.S. Steel’s Clairton plant manager, recalled taking the call from Ms. Hunt the day after the flood.
“I remember that Dr. Hunt was just devastated because they had just reopened the school and the kids had just come back into the classroom, and now she was faced with having to shut the school down for an undetermined period of time because of the flooding and the damage that had occurred,” he said. “I told Dr. Hunt, ‘Let me know what you need. We will help with whatever you need to get your building back in working order.’ ”
Mr. Rhoads got a group together of over 100 volunteers who worked more than 2,000 hours during the summer to refurbish the school. Those volunteers included workers from the steel giant and employees from Verona-based industrial service provider Avalotis Corp., who helped with the painting.
In total, more than 40,000 square feet of wall surfaces were repainted and thousands of square feet of carpet were installed in the library and office spaces. Some work, including updates to the school’s auditorium, still need to completed, and new lockers and furniture remains on backorder.
But for what has been done, Ms. Hunt said she could not describe her level of appreciation.
“I’m humbled,” she said. “It’s an act of kindness because it didn’t have to be done.”