Buckeye to turn media center into space for Tri-C program

YORK TWP. — Buckeye High School's media center will soon be transformed into a more flexible space, which aims to give high school students a place to earn college credit. The Buckeye Board of Education approved turning the media center into a lab during its meeting Tuesday. Superintendent Jeff Stanton said administration at the high school identified for multiple years that students taking College Credit Plus classes, especially online, often struggle. As a result, a plan was brought forth to develop a support lab for high school students taking college classes. "During the school day, this room will be a (College Credit Plus) lab, so to speak, where our teachers and our counselors will be supporting them here," he said. Another prong of the plan involved creating an Associate's Academy in partnership with Cuyahoga Community College that allows students to earn an associate of art degree at the same time as their high school diploma. "Right now, we have 28 students that are enrolling in the academy for next year," Stanton said. "We have absolutely found a resource for our students, and we want to have that." The cost to do work on the media center is between $42,000 and $48,000, he said. Work will begin on the space when this school year is over to prepare the area for use during the 2026-27 school year. "It's just a different way to learn and to support our kids who right now want to go down that pathway but don't have the academic supports on site to allow them to do that," board member Seth Kujat said. "We know the data is showing we have to have a facility on campus to keep those kids engaged in their learning." Stanton said when the high school is turned into a junior high, the space will still be used in some fashion. Currently, the high school's media center is being underused. "We were on the higher end (two years ago)," High School Principal Adam Snook said. "We checked out 37 books. There were other schools that had zero." Contact reporter Madisyn Woodring at (330) 721-4049 or mwoodring@medina-gazette.com.