Problems

Landkreis Aurich, which is in charge of the school building and the budget of the school, were for some time reluctant to find a solution for the obvious shortage of class rooms at our school. Last year the social democrat majority fraction insisted on their position that not a single cent should be spent on conservative educational reforms. By and by they had to realize that Gymnasium Ulricianum could not be left alone with a huge pile of problems. So last year all parties agreed that an enlargement of the school building with 15 new classrooms should be built immediately. Unfortunately, up to now nothing has happened.

Since the school applied for money that should pay for all-day school facilities like a common room, a school library and a school canteen things have become complicated. Landkreis Aurich has decided that they will not start to build the enlargement until there is a hint from Hanover that money can be expected for these all-day facilities. So things have come to a deadlock. Gymnasium Ulricianum is in a hopeless situation. With more than 700 pupils to come and no rooms for these pupils the situation is getting worrying.

Solutions

At least there is room for 360 new pupils in two “outposts” of Gymnasium Ulricianum. Year 5 will be taught in the school building in Sandhorst about 3 km away and two year 5, year 6 and year 7 forms will be taught by staff of Gymnasium Ulricianum in Moorhusen (13 km). This means tremendous problems in timetabling staff and producing reasonable timetables for the pupils.

The class-room problems in Aurich can only be solved by the enlargement of the school building as it was planned and agreed on last year. The school is short of 12 class rooms and 7 rooms for Sciences, Arts and Music. There is also a great shortage of gym room. There is only one gym on the school campus and this gym is only capable of less than 40% of the Sports lessons that have to be taught. Hopefully Landkreis Aurich will decide to start building the enlargement in July 2004 when a hint from Hanover about all-day school funding is likely to come. A new gym for Gymnasium Ulricianum is planned to be built in the year 2006.

Nevertheless, Gymnasium Ulricianum is in a very difficult situation in the next school year (2004/2005) since the new school rooms will not be ready before spring or summer 2005. This means that there will have to be more lessons in the afternoon, perhaps even teaching in shifts will be necessary.
It could also mean that the school will have to use additional rooms in the neighbourhood, e.g. in parish centres or banks (as it happened in the 1980s). The district government, however, has made it clear that apart from Sandhorst and Moorhusen Gymnasium Ulricianum will not have to use school room that is not on the campus. Now Landkreis Aurich is asked to find a solution. The school has made several suggestion and is desperately waiting for decisions so that the planning for the next school year can go ahead.

Library or “Study Centre”

The pupils and students of Gymnasium Ulricianum urgently need a “Study Centre”. In their primary school years pupils have learnt to make use of a library step by step. When they come to our school this important part of education must be continued. In modern school education pupils and students should be taught to make use of libraries as well as multimedia and internet information. So schools, especially a Gymnasium, which has to prepare students efficiently for their university studies, need a “Study Centre”.
The school funding society (Förderkreis des Ulricianums) has collected money for books and multi media. The school budget committee has decided to spend money on the “Study Centre”. An architect has developed plans how to change the first floor of the old railway station building into a “Study Centre”. The building cost will be about 160.000,- EUR. So what are we waiting for? There is money for books etc., there are plans and with the support of Landkreis Aurich the school could go ahead.

New rooms in the enlargement building

The enlargement of the school building is definitely necessary. Even in 2011 when the last year 13 will have passed their Abitur exams and students will do their Abitur after 12 years of school (not 13 years as before), the additional school rooms in the enlargement will be needed. Many of the rooms that are available now in Gymnasium Ulricianum are much too small for 32 pupils (which is the new limit!). The school needs bigger class-rooms, the small rooms could be used for the necessary all-day school facilities. Apart from the school rooms the entrance hall in the ground floor will be welcomed by pupils and staff because there is no common room for 1.450 pupils. Already in 1966 head teacher and parents committee complained about this fact. Perhaps Gymnasium Ulricianum will get this common room in 2005 and will than be able to welcome their new pupils indoors. At present no room is big enough to welcome 220 pupils and their parents on the first school day. This event has to take place outdoors.

Moorhusen

It is obvious that Gymnasium Ulricianum is simply too big: Next school year it will be the biggest Grammar school in Lower Saxony. So local politicians tried to agree on a place for a new Grammar school. This sounds easy, but it is very difficult, because the old borders between Landkreis Norden and Landkreis Aurich still seem to exist in peoples’ heads. In the end local politicians could not agree on one place and Gymnasium Ulricianum was asked to teach the pupils of Südbrookmerland, who want to go to a Grammar School, in Moorhusen. The school building is nice and spacious and year 5 and year 6 forms will find their rooms in one corridor. The reception by the Moorhusen head was very friendly and helpful and there is good support by the local administration. More parents than expected have declared to send their children to this “outpost” of Gymnasium Ulricianum. Maybe in a few years time there will be “Gymnasium Moorhusen” - as an independent school.

Sandhorst

Sandhorst School Centre used to be the place of “Orientierungstufe Sandhorst” for year 5 and year 6. This will no longer exist next school year. Hauptschule Sandhorst will take over some rooms for their new year 5 and year 6 forms and use some of the rooms for all-day school facilities. 8 class rooms will be left for Gymnasium Ulricianum: 6 class rooms for the year 5 forms, 1 science room and 1 room for arts and music.
It will be strange for the new pupils of our school that they will not be taught on the school campus, but some 3 km away, however, it might be an advantage for the young pupils, who come from small primary schools, to have a big school yard to play on and not to be together with 1500 other pupils right from the beginning.
A disadvantage will certainly be the fact that these pupils have a longer school way and have to change busses more often than their older mates. This bussing makes the Sandhorst “outpost” of Gymnasium Ulricanum an expensive solution. Perhaps this will be the reason to find other ways to solve the room problems.

by Hans-Juergen Westermeyer

last change: 10.03.2004 10:57