Kevin Carnes laughed like everybody else when he heard it Monday morning at Mountainview Elementary School.
Then he did some serious musing.
“We ought to put that kid in a marketing campaign,” he said.
That was after said kid, a second-grader, had yelled, “I’m never leaving this room.”
The student was talking about the library (media center) of the school on Green Bag Road, which was showing off its new renovations that morning.
His classmates were also doing modified takes of the end zone celebration in the library’s former “pit” reading area.
Which was appropriate, given the project’s gridiron connections.
Mountainview Elementary earlier pulled down a $50,000 grant, courtesy of the Big 12 athletic conference at College Football Playoff Foundation.
The money was solely for the upgrade of the Mountainview media center.
Schools in Ames, Iowa, Oklahoma City and Arlington, Texas, have also benefited from the grant.
“Libraries are the hub of learning in every school,” Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby said, after a brief ceremony at Mountainview.
“A renovated library gives educators and students a collaborative learning environment to help achieve academic success.”
The juked-up library features new, recessed shelving for more room, along with enhanced lighting, carpeting and other flooring.
Ergonomic plush furniture, the exclusive design of Lakeshore Learning Materials, Carnes’ company, was also incorporated into the new design.
“There’s no way we could have done this on our own,” school librarian Teresa Richardson said.
The 27-year-old Mountainview Elementary is home to 750 students in pre-kindergarten through 5th grade.
Richardson said she and Principal Angela Dickerson had huddled before they even knew about the playoff foundation dollars.
They were going over the Mountainview budget in hopes of making at least some improvements to the library, which hadn’t been touched since the school was built.
The renovations began last month, and the library was cordoned off until Monday.
“This is the first time our kids are seeing it,” Richardson said.
Zyeir Clarke gave a good grade to the reveal.
“I like it,” the second-grader said.
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