Posted on November 2, 2016.
By Thomas Sellers Jr.
With so many new parts inside the Millington Central High School Annex, Millington Municipal Schools Superintendent Dr. David Roper would be busy for several days expressing gratitude for those who made it all possible.
This morning Roper and members of MMS and MCHS welcomed personnel from Lowe’s to say thank you for a $5,000 grant providing improvements for the Home Economics area.
“It means the world to us to be able to make these improvements within our school system,” said Oscar Brown, supervisor of operations and transportation services. “It’s going to benefit our educational process. That’s what we really want to do is enhance the educational process and encourage the students to do well. This room will go a long way to do that. The community coming in to help us out with the grants says more.”
MCHS was selected to receive a 2016 Lowe’s Toolbox for Education grant for the Family and Consumer Science Kitchen Cabinets Project from the Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation.
MCHS instructor Chasity Guy said she and her students appreciate the first-class appearance of their work area.
“It means a lot to us because my kids have a state-of-the-art kitchen to work with,” she said. “They’re able to do things we weren’t able to do in our older kitchen. They’re able to prepare more and they have more space. Also the kids take a lot of pride in it. We do our food labs and they clean and take care of the things we were given like it’s their own. I’m very grateful.”
MMS and the Department of Coordinated School Health Mission sought this project to provide adequate nutrition resources and teach culinary and budgeting skills to students to assist them with lifelong healthy goals.
The School District renovated the former MCHS Freshman Academy Building to relocate classes that were held in the old vocational building which will be demolished to accommodate future growth.
The renovation of the Annex included the purchase and installation of kitchen cabinetry for the Consumer Science classes.
All of the cabinetry needed for this project was purchased at Lowe’s. The grant covered the estimated cost.
“I would like to say thank you so much Lowe’s for thinking about us and investing in us,” Guy said. “Thank you for investing in our students’ futures and opportunities to be able to do stuff outside of the traditional classroom.”
Brown noted the Lowe’s contribution is one of the many signs of things changing for the better around Millington’s schools.
“Means that we’re doing the right things,” he said. “We’re getting better as we grow. We’re getting better at what we do and hopefully we’ll continue to grow and improve. I’m excited for the opportunity to be an integrator of positive change in Millington, getting some of the thing we want done with our schools.”
Brown said he hopes the Lowe’s grant becomes a trend among area businesses for Millington Municipal Schools.
“I hope the whole community will jump on board,” he said. “This takes a community effort. And we need a lot of community support because there a lot of things we need done.
“We would be greatly enhance if the community would back us,” Brown concluded, “and in the near future you will see the schools going to the businesses in the community asking for support. Hopefully the community will jump on board and make this thing go as high as it can go.”
For more information on the grant visit www.toolboxforeducation.com
