by Evan Coates ’24

Improvements to campus have been going on since the start of school. So far, they have included the exterior and interior repainting of different buildings and various landscaping upgrades. Some of the more routine work around the 25 acre campus ranged from the cutting of lawns, making and laying new mulch, and pruning trees, all the way to seeing up every single on campus event, both athletic and social.

The amount of time and work that goes into these tasks is remarkable and should be appreciated by the entire community, as many on campus events would never be possible without the maintenance team led by Janet Murray, Director of Facilities Operations. 

One of the more current project on campus was the repainting of the Sprague Hall basement and offices. This brought a refreshed and updated look to the building, making it a more pleasant experience to spend time there for both faculty and students.

These are just some of the improvements done during the school year, while the vast majority of the work to residential houses, school buildings, and dorms were completed over the summer.

Sem residents were happy when they returned from summer break to find common spaces and residential spaces fitted with multiple upgrades. These included, but are not limited to; a new roof for the Pettibone Dickson Darte Center , new flooring and painting for the 3rd floor of Swetland Hall, along with new furniture for the 3rd and 4th floors, 45 new windows, trims, trims, surface sills, and painting in Nesbitt Hall, the expansion of the athletic training center, and repairs to the tennis court. The combination of these projects adds to the visual aspect of Sem’s sophistication and appeal as a day and boarding school. Looking into the future, the maintenance team is considering seeking board approval for pool renovations, more roof replacements, new HVAC chiller for Sprague Hall, and possibly more.