Edison renovations almost complete

Students will notice big changes when they walk through the doors of Edison Preparatory School on the first day of class.<br><br>News on Six Reporter Patrina Adger found out that construction, renovation,

Sunday, August 11th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

Students will notice big changes when they walk through the doors of Edison Preparatory School on the first day of class.

News on Six Reporter Patrina Adger found out that construction, renovation, and changes to the curriculum have some students excited about the upcoming year.

18 year-old Austin Ambrose who attends Edison says, "I live a block away and I've seen all these changes throughout."

The new changes this year include a new library and administration building.

Principal Steve Mayfield says the library will have new computers, books and two media centers, "We've instituted 14 additional classrooms, 3 brand new science labs a computer lab, a computer lab in the middle of the school, new photography room so there's quite a bit going on here."

Along with the cosmetic changes there's also a change in the curriculum as Edison becomes a magnet school. Along with Booker T and Carver schools this will be the third magnet school in the Tulsa Public School system.

This year Edison's magnet program will only include 6th and 9th graders... adding 120 new students.

"In our 6th grade all their core classed are pre AP curriculum, they have to take the great books programs and they have to take a foreign language rotation of latin, french, german, spanish and russian so it's a high caliber academically oriented program, " Mayfield says. "We saw a need for kids who within TPS to attend a magnet type program because of the number that wasn't accepted at Washington and Carver."

Mayfield says Edison's program is set with the same type of criteria as Booker T and Carver. Within four years he hopes to expand the program for all grades 6 through 12.

"Our students deserve to come in a clean nice environment to learn," he says, "this place can't go anywhere but up it's a great facility."

The school is expected to be ready to open by the first day of school on September 3rd.