Principal calls for school demolition

By Tania Martin
KALLISTA Primary School says it needs a cure for its building problems, not a Band-Aid treatment.
School principal Barbara Rose said that while recently announced State and Federal cash boost for the school was fantastic she said it is only a temporary measure and what the school needs is an overhaul.
In the last couple of months the State Government has spent $138,000 on new toilets and roof work and the Federal Government has just announced a $150,000 injection.
But Ms Rose said the money was only patching up the holes – not addressing the real problems.
“What we really need is a new school,” she said.
“The money is great but what we really would like to see is the building pulled down and started from scratch instead of putting on all these Band-Aids,” she said.
Ms Rose and the teaching staff say it would be cheaper in the long run if the Government built a new school.
She said the latest injection of cash from the Federal Government’s Investing in Our School’s program would go towards redesigning a new roof and improving classroom spaces.
“The roof is too low and is sagging – we need to get someone in to design a higher roof,” she said.
Ms Rose said the classrooms are also too small and need to be redesigned.
She said there is no room to put computers in the classrooms and several of the school’s computers are set up on tables in the hallways.
Ms Rose said if the rooms were big enough computers could be put in the classrooms.
La Trobe MP Jason Wood agreed that Kallista was one of the primary schools in his electorate that needs major injections of cash.
He said he would keep lobbying the Government for more funds for the school.
Ms Rose said the school’s next goal is to get water grants so that the school can install four water tanks.
She said the school gets a lot of water run-off when it rains which could be used on the school garden or other areas of the school if there were water tanks to catch the rain.