Renovations at Madison Middle School have begun this summer.

A loop around the building will be constructed to separate buses from personal vehicles, improving traffic and safety before and after school. Buses will then be able to pick up and drop off at the commons area on the north side of the school, while parent pick-up and drop-off will remain in the loop drive off Baylor.

The building of the softball locker room, which is the only new square footage in the entire 2016 bond issue, will free up space in the main building so that locker rooms just north of the auditorium can be reconfigured. The choir program will be moving to space in the reconfigured area, allowing the orchestra program to use the former choir room. The locker room area reconfiguration will also provide an additional breakout room and a storage for the music programs, while still providing appropriate locker rooms for girls and boys taking physical education classes.

The auditorium seats will be replaced with ones like those in the Fine Arts Center at the high school. The finishes and systems in the stage area and auditorium will be refreshed where needed.

The original steam heating system which has been serving portions of the site since it was constructed in the late 1960s will finally be replaced with a modern and energy efficient system with on-demand heating and cooling.

The auditorium was the only part of Central Middle School that was not renovated in the 2013 bond. The seats on its main level will be replaced with ones like those at the Fine Arts Center, while the historic seats will remain in the balcony. Plaster rot will be addressed, worn carpet replaced, and there will be safety update for the balcony rail and updates to the audiovisual system.

(Photo Courtesy of Bartlesville Public Schools)