Bland, blander, and blandest. Those are the common feelings experienced by students when walking through the hallways of our school.

There are some areas in the school that can brighten up the day, like the cheerfully decorated library, or the comfy couches in the senior classroom. However, the lack of renovations that have been done to improve the school overall is rather disappointing.

Although JC has begun to update the school with a fresh coat of paint in the guidance hallway and one remodeled bathroom, the rest of the school continues to rank below par in aesthetic appeal.

The dull gray cinder block walls that line every hallway offer no excitement. Coming to school every day to face the same bland color makes those early mornings even worse.

Therefore, adding some color to the lockers or walls would brighten the hallways up and provide a more appealing atmosphere. The school is starting to look a bit better with the fresh paint by in the guidance hallway. However, the choice of white paint is not all that interesting.

After walking through the dull hallways, and upon entering the bathroom, students are once again let down. In the female bathrooms on the second floor, two of the doors do not have locks, and one whole row of sinks do not work. The ones that are in use are filled with soap scum.

However, despite the cinder block walls and half of the bathroom sinks out of order, not all of JC needs remodeling.

For example, JC’s landscapes and gardening always looks fresh and well kept. With the flowers blooming in those spring months, the campus looks alive and welcoming. Walking into school in the spring is a breath of fresh air compared to the rest of year. While it’s understandable that in the winter time, the outside does not look as great as it does during the warmer months, there are still opportunities to make the school look a bit better. For one, try powerwashing the side by the Art Wing that faces Route 22. The newly added lettering of “The John Carroll School” looks really official and nice, but would look more welcoming if there were not black spots all around it.

Additionally, the courtyard is another commendable aspect of the school. It’s a place where students can go during their free mods to get some fresh air. It is also the home to our local ducks. It would be better if the doors were unlocked all the time so students were able to go outside whenever they wished.

The easiest way JC could brighten up the school and the students’ lives is to redo the locker rooms. The locker rooms would be really cool if there were bright colors, or the school colors painted on the walls. The team locker rooms have more recently been updated, but having speakers installed that can be used by students to play music would provide a great place to “pump up” before a big game.

But instead of making the locker room an awesome space, it has turned into a place of musty mold. The showers have a coating of mold and other unidentifiable scum caked on them. If the showers actually had curtains on them, and did not look like a fifth grade science fair project, students would be more inclined to take advantage of the amenities JC provides.

If John Carroll got a face lift, the school as a whole would look more appealing and welcoming. It would be a source of pride for all Patriots to be able to show off the whole of our school, instead of having to overlook some parts or keep them hidden.