As the aquaponics plants begin to bloom for spring, the Aquaponics Lab has sprung into packing up and moving out.

They are getting new floors which means a lot of change is going on in the room.

The Aquaponics Lab is a complex room. It is made up of several individual systems that each contain their own plants. There is also a wall of plants that is called the living wall. There are also large fish tanks in the room. The beds are what Ms. Lain is most concerned about.

“We’ve never disassembled the beds on our own,” said Ms. Lain, “There’s a little bit of anxiety about this. They are a big part of the room.”

The beds consists of several systems that are com- pletely functional and serve not only an education purpose but a functional one as well. The beds in these systems are vegetables that are sold for profit, which benefits the program.

“There are so many gallons of water being used in that room constantly. Some of this water doesn’t always make it where it’s supposed to go and some gets spilled onto the floor. It really ruins the floor in there.” said Tess Conway, Div. 558.

When this happens it warps the wood flooring, causing it to become difficult to walk on. It is raised in places and is becoming a problem for not only the students but for visitors as well. The warped floor makes it hard for students in wheelchairs to use the room and can also be a hazard to other visitors. Fixing it is going to be a big project.

“It’s going to take a lot of work. We have to work with the construction team over the summer,” said Lain. “We have to break down every single thing – we’re relying on a lot of help from our second year students. Every system needs to be taken apart.”

“The Aquaponics Lab is a focal point of the school. It is on the first floor and has huge win- dows facing the hallway, and that lets people see in,” said Conway.

Visitors to the school often come to see the room seeing as it is a rather large project and the only one of its kind in Chicago. With this being the case the room is frequently visited and the warped floors cause a problem.

Ms. Lain found out about the plan to redo the floors a few months ago. Originally there was no set plan regarding the timeline of this project. Once they knew for sure that they were going through with it the plans were made to move all the systems. In order to do the floors they have to take everything out of the room. The systems have to be moved and many of the plants around the room were sold to clear out the room. Moving the systems to room 124 is a large project, accomplished with the help of many of the Aquaponics 2 students in the independent study program like Conway.

Students take care of their own beds and even helped put together a seminar in Roscoe Village to teach people how to build their own mini systems. These mini systems were based on growing plants using a smaller version of a regular system. They were built using simpler materials, making it easier for those in the seminar to understand how they work.

This project was a huge success, according to Lain.

“We had a full house,” said Lain of the Roscoe Village seminar. “It was a free workshop and people could purchase their systems once they finished. It was student-directed – they totally took the lead. We also got a grant for $1,000 from the Roscoe Village Neighbors which was a huge help.”

Aquaponics is not a common program, especially in a high school. Lane has the only program like this in the area. Taking apart the room is a big step towards making it safer for people to come and experience it.