Some may be wondering why the school is building a fence, and the answer is quite simple: insurance. The school’s insurance now requires a fence to be built around the pond for the possible liability of drowning. Without a fence, someone may fall into the pond and not be able to get out, because some parts are as deep as three to four feet. The school chooses to keep the pond, though, for use in biology and environmental science classes. The wildlife, including frogs and reeds, can be used to record data and observe the ecosystem.

The real purpose for the pond has not yet been revealed to the student body. It is rumored that when a biology experiment went wrong, a vicious monster was created and the student responsible, not able to contain him, released him into the school pond. Near the beginning of the year, the monster was content with only eating an occasional passerby, usually a cross country runner, but recently it has ventured out of the pond and taken a stray baseball or lacrosse player. The best reasons for this so far are either the winter affected the eating habits of the monster, or the monster is about to reproduce.

A specific date has not yet been set for the construction of the fence but it is expected that it will begin sometime in May. It is not decided if the remodeling/construction class will build it or if a private construction company will be chosen for the project. The fence will be made out of a chain link fence since the schools insurance advised against a wooden one, which wouldn’t last a week. The project is funded by the science department’s giant grant obtained by last year’s Samsung contest, which won the school $50,000.

All in all, the fence will help lead the school down a better path. It will allow the school to keep the frog pond for science classes, bringing a new depth to environmental and biological sciences, and it will also help keep the monster within and possibly save a few students.