Seaman High School has added an outdoor eating and seating area created by 2020 graduate Andrew Patton for his Eagle Scout Project, near the main entrance, named Alumni Park Class of 2020. 

Principal Monaghan stated that the school had been talking about something similar for years. 

“Andrew was looking for an eagle project and so it was the perfect time for students to help in the creation of the Alumni Park.”

Alumni Park is available for only the senior class to eat lunch at for the 2020-2021 school year. Clubs, teams, and activities have the opportunity to gather there if interested and permitted.

“Classrooms can move outside to have class there, for example Choir has been outside for the first part of the year. An idea for a nice outdoor gathering place was needed and so it’s perfect,” comments Monaghan.

The initial idea for Alumni Park started at a Seaman High School basketball game during Patton’s junior year.

He said that “Mr. Monaghan came up to me and told me that he heard I was looking for an Eagle project. He briefly described his idea and asked if I’d be willing to take that on as a project manager. I thought about it for a couple days and decided that it would be a great Eagle Project. I knew that while I wanted to do something for the district, I wanted my project to have a noticeable impact on the high school itself so when Mr. Monaghan told me about this idea, I knew it was perfect.”

Patton says there were three major phases involved with building Alumni Park. “The first was planning. Mr. Monaghan and I, along with help of others, spent a lot of time figuring out how big to make the area and how many tables we needed and all those other details,” Patton states.  

Materials were ordered and arrived in March of 2020. During the “real” spring break of 2020 Patton got together with fellow Boy Scouts, as well as friends, “to construct the tables over two different work days. Sometime after that the concrete pad was poured.”

 The project was officially finished in early June 2020. Lastly, we had to move the tables from the old Indian Creek Elementary School building where they were stored, to the high school where they are now. 

The new area was named Alumni Park to recognize to give recognition to alumni.

“It was a way to bring and recognize the alumni as well as the 2020 class for organizing it, and the fact that it was the 100th year of Seaman High School and that 2020 was just a weird year in general that everyone will remember,” states Monaghan. 

Patton mentions that when he first started working on the project he thought the main purpose of the park would be for extra seating at lunch.

“I hoped to get the project done around March of 2020 and I was on track to get that done, and that was when my senior class could enjoy the end of our senior year outside during lunch. Obviously that didn’t happen but now it is open to students in school now to eat lunch at. While that is its main purpose it can be used for so many other things. Quite a few times over the summer I would get together with my friends and eat a meal or ice cream.”

The hope for Alumni Park is that students appreciate being able to be outside.

“Whether it is at lunch after a long day of sitting in classrooms, or if it’s meeting with a club, again not just wanting to sit in a classroom. It is nice to have a change in scenery every once in a while and I hope that everyone enjoys the opportunity,” states Patton. 

Below are the rules that were stated in relation to Alumni Park for lunch. 

Senior Lunch Plan:

Seniors only may take their lunch to the Alumni Park Class of 2020 area on nice weather days if you like or eat lunch in the former freshmen lunch area.  These areas are designated for seniors only during the three traditional lunch periods.  

Here are the guidelines that have been established:

1. To allow for social distancing: 4 students to a table, 1 student per seat for tables with umbrellas. Students may also sit on the benches 
2. No visitors are allowed in the Alumni Park area. We will continue to follow the same procedures for outside guests, which require prior approval from a principal to allow a visit from a family member or SHS graduates to join you for lunch inside the building
3. You may not leave the Alumni Park area for any reason. For example, to go to your car
4. No outside food deliveries are permitted to the Alumni Park area
5. The Norsemen Bay and Viking Bay areas are not available for use as many classrooms are using these areas

We hope that you enjoy these improvements to the lunch schedule.