Jones Academy of Fine Arts and Dual Language has lots of great spaces – a dance room, piano lab, STEM labs, music rooms, art rooms, multiple collaboration spaces and a new gym.
But it needed one more thing. A bigger kitchen.
Now, thanks to the 2019 Bond, Jones has exactly that.
It was a long process though. They first gutted the old kitchen and then built an addition adjacent to it. During construction, the Jones food service staff couldn’t cook on campus. They had to cook at the food and nutrition services building on Arkansas Lane. They then transported the food to Jones three times a day.
It was a lot of work, but the finished product made it worth it. The new, modern kitchen has new serving lines and more space and better equipment for preparing and serving food to students.
“The new kitchen at Jones Academy is just WOW!” said Marti Beasley, the Arlington ISD food services supervisor for the Lamar area. “The cafeteria employees love it. They are so happy to be able to cook in their own kitchen and serve the students. Blanca Garza and her staff do a great job welcoming students in the cafeteria and serving them their meals, which makes an environment the students can enjoy.”
Jones’ students and staff are grateful for the new kitchen, too.
“We are very excited for the new kitchen addition,” said Jones principal Katiuska Herrador. “It has created more food preparation space and better efficiency for the kitchen’s work. The fresh, slick look matches our school’s brightness and vibrancy. Our students and kitchen staff are so happy.”
The End
As the 2019 Bond project at Jones wraps up, it marks the end of years of construction at the school. It started with the 2014 Bond and a complete renovation of the interior to provide spaces that support the fine arts and dual language programming. Then a 16,840 square-foot addition with classrooms and a new gymnasium gave the growing school much needed space.
Finally, the 2019 Bond brought the kitchen addition and a new digital marquee. Plus, last summer, the sidewalks, drives and parking lots were redone with new concrete, and the pod classroom building was renovated with new flooring, paint and finishes.