In the coming year, Marco Island Academy will be graduating to a permanent campus, expanding its footprint on San Marco Road.
The new campus will include a full sized gym and basketball court, larger classrooms, and expanded common areas and offices. The new campus is projected to be completed in August 2020, bringing students in for the 2021-2022 school year. Dean of Students at Marco Island Academy, Mr. Kevin Ray, detailed progress on the construction of the new campus.
Ray explained that the roofing of the new building has been fully completed, and that the window installations were making significant progress. He stated that the completion of the new campus’s roof allowed for new possibilities, such as the onset of work relating to the building’s interior. Ray added that the interior construction has now entered the “decision making” phase.
When asked what small aspect he envisioned as playing a large role in the new campus, Ray responded with: “I’m really excited about the security enhancements the new building’s going to have.” He also added that there is going to be “a lot more security cameras that are going to be available to cover not only the interior, but also the exterior.”
In addition to enhanced and expanded security cameras, Ray stated that another major technological improvement in the new building will be key fobs and keycards. He explained that these features would require students and staff to scan their keycards in order to gain access to classrooms, which would also better the new campus’s security system. The Dean of Students also stated that communication and data flow would be significantly improved upon in the new building. He stressed his importance and dedication to the safety and security of Marco Island Academy’s students and staff.
Mr. Ray also provided some insight regarding the funds and finances of the new building. Although he could not provide an exact number, he estimated that about $2.5 million still had to be raised to fund the construction of the new campus. Ray explained that Miss Scott, Board Chair Jane Watt, and the Development Office as a whole have been “working at some capacity almost all the time to raise the funding.”
Given the swift advancements of the new building’s construction, it certainly is a great day to be a Ray.