Hello Petition Supporters,
My name is Alexandra, and I'm on the Civic Engagement team at Change.org. Our team works to connect petition starters and supporters with the public officials who have the power to act on the issues you care about.
I spoke with Dr. Amalia Ramon, Assistant Principal at Austin High School, regarding this petition to fix the school’s Performing Arts Center.
Dr. Ramon shared that the administration was not previously aware of this petition, and that they will listen to student concerns. The recommended path forward is to make an appointment to meet with the principal and bring the petition and signatures to that meeting. This will help ensure the specific problems are on record with the administration and can be elevated to the district. Dr. Bedford would then share those concerns with the district’s central office administration. Dr. Ramon explained that decisions about facility repairs like these ultimately fall to the Superintendent and the School Board, rather than the campus administration. Dr. Bedford would be able to reach out to Board members and the Superintendent’s office to share these concerns, since they may not yet be aware of the petition either.
She also noted that the administration walks through the building every day and had not been made aware of the specific issues described in the petition, such as mold, poor air quality, broken seating, or AC system failures. Because of that, it’s important that these concerns be brought directly to school leadership so they can be documented and addressed.
Context on repairs: Dr. Ramon explained that the district previously had contractors working at Austin High School on planned renovations, including the fine arts building and science wing. However, that contractor is no longer working with the district, so construction and repairs have been put on hold. The district is now working to bring on a new contractor to continue the renovation work.
We’ll continue to follow up and share any further updates as this moves forward.
— The Change.org Civic Engagement Team