Change Is Good

Change is good. Well, usually change is good. Sometimes, change is just change and sometimes change brings hard results. The new Patriot Academy opened this week and, for the first time in more than 30 years there is no freshman class at Jefferson Count High School. While I still have my reservations about the concept of an off campus freshman academy, I must admit that it certainly makes the transition easier for the Class of 2017. They are not trucking around the Main Campus in its current state of disrepair. I find it a little odd that so many people are shocked at the level of construction at JCHS proper. The truth is that most of what people see at the school would have been there anyway, regardless of the roof collapse. It is simply a large renovation project in process. Progress is often messy and, like many thing in life, sometimes you just have to take the good with the bad. I am glad that the freshmen are not struggling to find their way around the Main Campus, so I suppose that, in the end, the Patriot Academy has proven to be the correct physical location for the Class of 2017. I only hope that the transition to the Main Campus will be executed with the same amount of thought and preparation that went into the construction of the new school. Fortunately, there is still a year for preparation. A year to assimilate to being a Patriot and a year to bridge the gap between the middle and high school. A lot can happen in a year. The renovation process will continue at JCHS and, by next school year, things will look very different.

By next year we may have a new hospital group running Jefferson Memorial. I fear that change will not be as positive for the County. While all eyes have been focused on the school building program, we have lost sight of one of our greatest assets in Jefferson County. We need a viable hospital and we need a compassionate hospital and I fear that we may end up being at least one short on the deal. This is an issue that should be on the minds of every resident in Jefferson County. Every elected official should have the proposed hospital acquisition on their radar. It is important for every man, woman and child in the County and we cannot afford to drop the ball on this one. A lot can happen in a year and we should not be distracted by a little renovation, or a lot of renovation for that matter. The future interests of Jefferson County lie beyond Dumplin Valley-the players are big and the stakes are bigger. This is one that we can’t afford to sleep through.