Upgrade tops class – Education Minister Bronwyn Pike and Monbulk MP James Merlino celebrate ne

By Tania Martin
TWO hills primary schools have shared in a $1 million cash windfall for much needed upgrades.
Both Mt Dandenong and Cockatoo Primary Schools where shocked but elated last week when Education Minister Bronwyn Pike announced the cash.
Each will receive $500,000 for the upgrade of a multipurpose room and improving classrooms.
They were just two of six schools from across the state to share in the cash boost under the Better Schools Today initiative.
It was both a shock and wonderful surprise as the reason for the minister’s visit was kept under wraps.
Monbulk MP James Merlino and Gembrook MP Tammy Lobato didn’t know about the announcement.
Mt Dandenong principal Wendy Britt said the school was disappointed last year when it missed out on funding.
Ms Britt said the cash was a shock because the school hadn’t reapplied.
But since then the Government has announced this latest round of funding as part of the 2008-09 budget, releasing an extra $3 million.
Ms Britt said the cash injection would enable the school to extend its multipurpose room.
At the moment the room acts as the school’s theatre and the community’s fire refuge area.
Ms Britt said extending the multi-purpose room was a dream come true following a five-year fight for the cash.
She said for a long time the students have had to travel off the mountain for events such as school graduations.
“It was always too small for big functions but now we are going to extend the building as far as the money will go,” she said.
“We are so excited about this. It’s just wonderful news for a school like ours that wouldn’t ordinarily have access to this sort of funding.”
It was a similar story in Cockatoo where teachers and students were thrilled with the news.
Principal Darrelyn Boucher said the $500,000 would be used to upgrade six of the permanent classrooms and help create four larger learning spaces.
Ms Boucher said the upgrade would allow students and teachers to access high quality facilities for a more suitable and open learning environment.
She said the school had sent in an expression of interest for the capital works grant but had never expected to be one of the school’s at the top of the list.
“It’s wonderful news and there has been a lot of cheering from the children and the teachers are so excited about the upgrade,” she said.
Ms Boucher said the school had been in need of an upgrade for a long time because some of the classrooms were more than 30 years old.
“The rooms are just not large enough but now we are going to have larger learning spaces and it’s going to be fantastic,” she said.