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8
SUMMER
2012
until the furniture is in place, the kids are
moved in, and all the bugs ironed out.”
His eyes suddenly sparkle. “But I am very
excited,” he said. “When people see the
new school they are going to say: ‘wow’!
And then they are going to say: ‘what
about the rest of the school?’”
Mourani listened attentively. Out of the
players in this latest chapter, she is the
earliest witness to IC’s modern history.
Hired as an English teacher in 1975 when
still in college herself, she wore many
hats, including the director of the elemen-
tary school from 1987 to 1992, and was
pivotal in heralding in the latest educa-
tion methods in IC’s curriculum. In only
a few short months, she will be walking
into buildings especially designed to fit
an education program that she envisioned
many years before.
“I can’t wait for our kids to move in,” she
said. “I’m very excited about it.”
At the moment, however, she is still try-
ing to get her head clear of the “thousands
and thousands of hours we spent discuss-
ing everything from false ceilings to cop-
per piping to PVC”, she said laughing. “I
think I will only feel the exhilaration once
the building is finally in use.”
Overtime but who’s counting?
But when it comes down to it, the daily
grind of moving into the new build-
ings will fall on the shoulders of current
elementary school director, Julia Kozak.
It will really be up to her to assess what
is working and what isn’t. Only two years
ago, she dreaded the move. She had
grown to love Reynolds Hall and in fact
lovingly made many changes to the old
British Embassy building. It didn’t look
crowded but “cozy”, as she put it.
But as the new buildings began to take
shape, she couldn’t help joining in the ex-
citement. Until an unfortunate fall broke
her leg a few weeks ago, she was walking
daily to the construction site and noting
the progress.
The work ahead for her and her team
is enormous.There will undoubtedly be
many overtime hours. “I know there are
going to be glitches that come along,” she
said. “It’s going to be exhausting and we
know it.”
Many decisions are still up in the air.
Should recess be staggered? Should the
schedule change? Many questions will
only be clarified once the move is com-
plete. “There are many people with a vast
wealth of experience and expertise who
are collaborating together to answer con-
cerns and questions,” she said. “It’s going
to be great. We have wonderful memories
at Reynolds Hall but we will say goodbye
and celebrate a new beginning.”
Behind the scenes...
In his workplace – squeezed in the corner
of the Alumni office in Thomson Hall
– Youssef Abi Abdallah, the Director of
Facilities, is swamped with maps. His job
is to make sure that designs are executed
as planned, on time, and according to
the budget. At times, he has been seen
smiling widely; other times, he admi-
David Croteau, John Johnson in front of the South Building