New Bridge at Southeast Poses Problems for Students

Commentary and photo by Violet Hardy.

The safety of its students is the number one concern for any school around the world. The building that houses Friendship Southeast is a big problem and an endangerment for Southeast scholars because of a bridge that is being built to connect the middle and elementary schools together. A teacher at Southeast Academy, Mr.Franklin, states, “There is a hole in the wall, which is open access to the construction. What if a preschooler is wandering in the area and does not notice the danger?” This quote shows how it is very dangerous for the scholars at Southeast Academy. 

This bridge construction makes it so students cannot use the staircase by the front office, which is the easiest and fastest route to class. This results in scholars being late to class after going to their lockers. The construction can also be very dangerous for people walking outside. It’s possible that the bridge could collapse at any time, which would result in the endangerment of scholars or people walking by in general. 

The construction of the bridge is also interrupting the classroom environment. When students  are learning, they may not be able to focus due to the loud noise from the tools being used to build this bridge. This can also scare younger students who may walk by the main office. The loud noises can scare them and may hurt their ears.

This new bridge is putting the safety and success of scholars and employees at risk, and is negatively affecting the learning environment at Southeast. Is that really what Southeast wants? The safety and learning of students should always come first, therefore, the construction of this new bridge should take place during summer break.   

Violet Hardy is a 5th grade student at Friendship Southeast Academy