Finally, a year has passed in the new school, the new Paint Branch. Sophomores through seniors have a year under their belts, navigating the three-story maze that is Paint Branch High School, and it is time to find out whether or not students miss the old Paint Branch or simply bask in the glow of the new building.

At the beginning of last year, it was common to hear students remark on how they missed the old school and all the memories in it. After a year, it seems that, while some opinions have changed, others have not.

Seniors, now in their second year in the new school, had two years in the old school, so it comes as no surprise that they tend to be the individuals who miss it the most. Similarly, juniors have some fond memories of the old building, but their memories come from just one year – their freshman year no less – so their connections are not quite as strong.  However, no matter how long they spent in it, each class, eleventh and twelfth, knows the ups and downs of each building.

Obviously the new building is an upgrade in terms of cleanliness. The school has a fresh feeling and the number of cockroach sightings in the new building is considerably lower in comparison to the common sighting of them in the old building.  Additionally, as senior Kim Hall explains, “It’s cleaner.” Hall likes the fact that the new building provides what students need, especially in the bathrooms where “we always have toilet paper and no more Twitter names written in lipstick on the mirrors.”

The old building seemed to present security with a tougher task in securing the entire space, so security seemed more lenient in regard to the locking and unlocking of doors. Everyone and anyone could essentially walk in through any door in the old building.  Lower E hallway was popular because of its easy entrance and exit to the student parking lot. However, the doors near the student parking lot in the new building are always locked, as are most other doors, in an effort to secure the building and keep track of who enters and exits the building.

Senior Maddie Doll really misses the lower E hallway of the old school. She remembers that at the time, “I didn’t really think too much of it…but now I miss it. It was a key part of the old school and a good way to get out of the building quickly and easily.”

Senior Kafil Patwary really likes all the doors being locked; “I feel much more secured,” Patwary explains.

The technology in the new building is also an upgrade from the old building. The motion-sensor lights can be frustrating but are also beneficial to the environment. The doors to classrooms are not intended to be left open like they were in the old building, which has irked some of the staff, but – again – this is for the environmental benefit.  Mr. Fantegrossi understands this and notes, “The doors staying closed is a necessity. They must be closed to keep the climate in the building stable.”

All the athletic teams are happy with the new weight room, which, as anyone will tell you, is one-million times better than the old weight room. Senior Javonn Curry used the weight room over the summer in preparation for football. Curry noticed space and materials as the key differences between the old weight room and the new one: “The weights are better and there is so much more room.”

Of course, along with the new building, the new weight room, and new technology comes new fields, outdoor courts, and stadium facilities. While several sports have not been able to experience the new fields just yet, excitement surrounds these facilities. Senior Gaston Copper, quarterback of the football team, loves the new stadium because, for one, “we haven’t had a home stadium for four years.”  Cooper also explains, “When the stands are crowded, that just gets me hyped.”

The other new athletic aspect is the indoor courts and wrestling room. Senior Alison Krizmanich feels that it is our mission as athletes in the first few years of the new building to make a mark. Krizmanich says, “There was so much history in the old gym, and now that we’re in the new school, we have even more motivation to be the first ones to make history in the new gym.”

Paint Branch junior TC Conrad misses the old school because it “felt more like a typical high school” and also because the new school is “too big and has too many people.” On the other hand, Conrad explains, “The new facilities are way better at the new school, compared to the old school.”

Another junior, Emily Higgins, is also pro-old school. The old school was better she says because “we could eat wherever we wanted.” Additionally, Higgins adds, “the new school has too many restrictions (throughout the building).”

Ultimately, Paint Branch students who miss enough aspects of the old school to long for it in some way will get past the memories of the old school.  After all, after the juniors graduate in 2015, no one at Paint Branch will have any experience in the old school, and this won’t even be a debate.