When you walk the halls of Riversprings Middle School, you can learn a little bit about what everyday life is like for the teachers and faculty.  The halls are slowly becoming adorned with framed color and black and white photographs portraying scenes of campus life at Riversprings.

Bill Taylor, a history teacher at Riversprings, came up with the idea when he was an intern at Wakulla Middle School during their 20th anniversary.   "A call went out for any and all photos taken at the school during its tenure," said Taylor.  "It surprised me how very few photos existed, and it seemed a shame that such a significant portion of the county's history had been lost."  

When Riversprings opened, Taylor approached principal Dod Walker and the School Improvement  Committee with the idea of making a concerted effort to create, display, and store as many photographs as possible of the daily goings-on at Riversprings.  To date, Taylor has collected nearly 10,000 photos, both digital and traditional, and has actively involved over 100 students in the collection process.  "My vision is to create a chronological history of the school as told through photographs," said Taylor.

Many of these photographs are being prepared for a digital slideshow display that will be used to enhance the front office at Riversprings, but several have been enlarged and framed and placed throughout the school as an ongoing celebration of the students, who Taylor feels truly make Riversprings the unique place that it is.  Many of the photos are taken by Taylor himself, but he encourages anyone else--parents, students, other teachers--to do the same.

The photographs that are enlaged and displayed in the school's hallways are chosen through the efforts of student committees that comb through all of the years prints to pull out a few that they feel shed new light on some part of Riversprings culture.  The School Improvement Committee gives $400 annually to use for the enlargment and framing of the winning photos.

Taylor's goal is to someday have the halls full of photos from each year of  Riversprings Middle School's existence.   "The kids love to see themselves in the photos, and I think it really personalizes the school for the students and the faculty and staff," says Taylor.  "Most of the photos are chosen because of the emotion or memory they invoke in the viewers.  Because of my love of history, I think it's important to preserve these memories for future generations to come.  The project has been very well received here at the school."

2005 - 2006 Winning Photographs

"PE Soccer"		"Blue Guitar"
"Lazy Rossow"		"Brock Sliding In"
		"Painting Murals"
"Home Ec"		"Technology"

Written by :

westmark

 

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