To the editor:

I have been teaching at Bainbridge High School since 1995 in the English and theater departments and served as the theater director from 2008 to 2015. Bainbridge High School has a strong arts and career technology program without a proper facility to celebrate and showcase all of the hundreds of hours that goes into any one of our programs: choir, band, theater, visual arts, family/consumer science, technical engineering and most recently a growing robotics program.

The 100 Building and the LGI (Large Group Instruction) classroom are antiquated remains of an era that shortchanged our campus in the early 1970s when the architects planned a “compromise” facility for the campus. The LGI is a “classroom/auditorium” without a viewable proscenium stage (many seats are blocked by the projection booth in the middle of the auditorium); the facility has no orchestra pit, backstage storage, costume shop, tech workshop, wing access, dressing rooms or rehearsal space.

Now is the time to vote YES for the replacement of the current 100 Building and provide a Career Technology and Arts Building to bring our campus into the true 21st Century of learning opportunities for our students.

I would ask each member of our community to question what is our long-term priority for the health of our community? A state-of-the-art facility to infuse both the arts and technical career education will benefit everyone in our community. Provide a respectful facility and the students will respect their learning and the community will have an inviting space to view the rewards of their investment.

Vote “YES” on Feb. 9!

BARBARA HUME

Bainbridge Island