Some fear Roosevelt high school will become an afterthought if students move out

Ellie Adcock on April 2, 2011 in School Stuff

The Palm Beach County School District is considering moving about 200 students from Roosevelt Full Service Center, a high school in West Palm Beach for at-risk teens, to the old Inlet Grove Community High School site in Riviera Beach.

The proposed move, which would take effect for the new school year, is meant to give students better career opportunities, but it has angered many.

Roosevelt, built in the 1950s and once a high school attended by many black area residents, is one of the district’s oldest schools and needs significant repairs and improvements.

District officials say the old Inlet Grove site – present Inlet Grove students moved in August to the former Suncoast High – and current North Technical Education Center is better equipped to offer career programs in automotive, culinary arts, construction and cosmetology.

For instance, the Inlet Grove site has six automotive bays and a culinary arts facility that are not in use, Roosevelt Principal Jeff Pollard said.

“I could move into that site and implement those programs in August because the facilities already exist,” Pollard said.

Roosevelt has a 644-student capacity, while the old Inlet Grove site can accommodate 710 students. The move, if approved, would start for the 2011-2012 school year.

But some community residents are concerned the district may ultimately tear down Roosevelt, a school steeped in rich African-American history. A few years ago, the district promised to rebuild the culinary program and renovate the kitchen. There were also discussions about setting up medical programs and starting a school clinic. But when the economy tanked, those plans never materialized.

“Nothing has been done for Roosevelt since 1970,” said Annie Nelson, a West Palm Beach resident and 30-year educator who graduated from the school in 1960. “Sooner or later the district will not have any use for it as an educational center.”

School Board Vice Chairwoman Debra Robinson said she understands the community’s concerns.

“It’s fear and lack of trust,” Robinson said. “The community has not had its needs met by the district.”

The district, however, insists it has no plans to tear down Roosevelt.

“I haven’t heard anything about that,” said Interim Superintendent Bill Malone. “I don’t have any reason to think that’s in the cards at all.”

Two weeks ago, Robinson set up an invite-only meeting for community residents, Roosevelt administrators and district officials to meet with Malone to discuss the issue. The meeting lasted about 90 minutes, Robinson said.

“I wanted (Malone) to hear the total picture,” Robinson said.

If Roosevelt’s students are transferred to the old Inlet Grove site, the district has proposed moving about 240 students from Joseph Littles-Nguzo Saba Charter School in Riviera Beach to Roosevelt.

“We don’t like to have vacant buildings,” said Joe Sanches, chief of facilities management. “They get vandalized and you still have to maintain it.”

Sanches said the district is preparing a lease for Joseph Littles, which the board will need to approve.

Malone said a decision is expected in the next few weeks.

Sanches said launching four career programs (automotive, cosmetology, culinary and construction) at one time would cost $966,000. But with the district mired in a budget crunch, Sanches said the programs would have to be rolled out over time.

The least expensive program to start would be cosmetology at about $146,000, he said. The most expensive would be automotive at $284,000.

Pollard said the move would be a good one for his students.

“This would be a wonderful opportunity to provide some career programs for our kids,” Pollard said. “I’m a committed educator. You give me a barn, and I’ll teach the kids.”

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