New Newton North Induces An Alum’s Jealousy

By Jeremy Bernfeld
Aug 31, 2010, 2:27 PM
3 Comments

The new Newton North's main hallway, complete with windows. (Jeremy Bernfeld for WBUR)

For me, going back to Newton North High School was a step into the future.

After opening Tuesday, the most expensive high school in the state — at $197 million — is a model of modernity.

When I attended Newton North about six years ago, the school was in disrepair. Leaking hallways, a crumbling stadium, moldy rugs and window-less rooms. The school was an embarrassing pockmark on Newton’s otherwise pristine image of manicured lawns and magnificent houses.

After almost a decade of political maneuvering, the city decided to abandon the old campus and build a new one. Planners hoped to build a state-of-the-art school.

After going back to visit my “old” school, I can say the city succeeded.

More windows (Jeremy Bernfeld for WBUR)

Students used to have to dress in layers, like mountaineers, because of fluctuations in temperature from classroom to classroom. Now, the campus is climate-controlled.

The old school was dark and dingy. Inside, I felt like Jonah swallowed by the whale. Now, there are windows. Glorious, natural light.

And we had a good excuse for being late. Visitors to the old Newton North needed a trained Sherpa guide — or at least a sophomore — to find any room.

Newton North has always been proud to produce great athletes, actors and musicians. Now the city has put its money where its mouth was and built astounding facilities for extracurricular activities. If the students perform as well as the campus looks, the Tigers should win every state championship this year and produce Broadway-quality theater.

There is no denying that the old school had character. The new school does, too — just a nicer, friendlier character. With wide open spaces, plenty of natural light, the school is finally an environment conducive to learning.

Was Newton North worth the $197 million price tag? Absolutely.

Related Stories:

Radio Boston: Newton’s ‘Taj Mahal,’ Newton North, Opens

Please follow our community rules when engaging in comment discussion on wbur.org.

John Nihen

I was around in 1972 when the then new school was built. I returned in 2001 while working on a story and was appalled at the amount of damage done to the school by the students. The school had its share of problems, but the vandalism and complete disregard for their own surroundings indicated to me either a spoiled student population or a lack of discipline on the part of the administration. I hope this new school fares better. It already had the legacy of costing nearly twice as much as it started out to be; making Newton taxpayers victims of a process that also lacked discipline and responsibility.
NNHS Student

I am a student at Newton North and I spent two years in the old North. As a member of various sports teams and the debate team, I have traveled around Massachusetts to many different high schools in areas of more or less affluence, and I can tell you this was needed. If you haven’t been in old North, you don’t know what it was like and how hard it was to learn in an environment that was falling apart. High schools in much less affluent areas were in much better condition. Should taxpayer money have been used the way it was, and should this have cost so much? Probably not. But this was not the public’s decision as much as it was local government, and least of all the students. Going to school every day and having to worry about getting mesothelioma from exposed asbestos was not fun. Not everyone in Newton is rich, and we’re not all pigs. Take into consideration another point of view. Yes, this school may be unnecessarily costly, but high cost over health hazards, most sane people would chose cost. We didn’t all vandalize the school, either. I for one never put a piece of graffiti anywhere, and there were some health risks (like the lack of ventilation and the asbestos) that were more pressing than any graffiti or defacing that could be done by a student.
Josephine F

I’d be fine with it if the State contributes a fixed amount to the construction of Newton High as to other high schools. It is Newton community’s decision whether to put tons of money for their kids’ schools, but the rest of MA taxpayers should not be responsible for paying the extra, especially when we are talking about cutting programs and laying off teachers. Yes, dear student of NNHS, you are entitled to study in a safe and healthy environment. But does it take $190M to build such a school, when most high schools take less than one-third of that to build? How many good teachers could be kept employed for many years if some of these money were to spent on them rather than fancy facility. Research repeatedly shows that it is good teacher that makes a difference.

Test Suggests 9 Ingredients Of Depression

New Newton North Induces An Alum’s Jealousy

MORNING EDITION

ON POINT

HERE & NOW

RADIO BOSTON

SCIENCE FRIDAY

ALL THINGS CONSIDERED

MARKETPLACE

FRESH AIR