WEBVTT

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Morning light. So dreams take
light as the dawn.

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Thank you for joining us on a
journey to the renovation of P 30

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four's butterfly garden and
courtyard.

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P 34 opened its doors in 1996
the building was erected and the

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butterfly garden came as a
compliment to the building opening in

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1996 the building opened under
Governor Pataki Rudy Giuliani was

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the mayor and the chancellor of
schools was Rudy crew.

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Did you know that the butterfly
garden sculpture was erected in

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1996 and it is part of public
art for public schools,

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which is an entity within the
school Construction Authority.

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There is a book that was
published in 2009 with over 1500 art

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pieces that are part of the New
York City Public Schools art

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collection.

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Our sculpture is one of them and
is in the book Public Art for

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Public Schools written by
Michelle Cohen in conversations during

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the 2023 2024 school year,

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our student council broached the
conversation and subject of

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going outside for recess.

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When we initially had the
conversation.

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It wasn't a possibility due to
the disrepair of our Butterfly

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garden in January 2024 we had a
unique opportunity to do some

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capital upgrades and in
consultation with the SLT and Student

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Council,

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we determined that we would move
forward with the renovation of

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the butterfly garden and
courtyard.

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The butterfly garden statue is
maintained by the conservator

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through the SC A the conservator
cleans paints and maintains the

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sculpture to ensure that the
stained glass is safe,

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that no birds or any other type
of animals nest in the sculpture

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and they make sure that it's
safe to still allow the students

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and staff to appreciate and sit
under.

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Yeah,

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the first order of business was
evaluating our tree and the

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butterfly garden to determine
whether or not we could save the

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tree. The tree roots were
overgrowing the space in which it was

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planted and it was creating a
trip and safety hazard for our

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Children. When they visit the
butterfly garden,

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the contractors came in and
evaluated the tree and determined

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that they were unable to save
the tree as the roots could not be

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shaved and they couldn't promise
that the tree would be

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maintained.

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The tree was removed and a
cherry blossom was replanted in its

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place to complement the garden.

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It's also a unique opportunity
to expose our Children and

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community to a unique tree that
is not very common in the Bronx.

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The courtyard had asphalt that
was in need of resurfacing.

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The asphalt was badly cracked
and started to deteriorate based

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on time as well as overall
weather conditions that we have

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endured over the past few years.

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And those renovations were
completed every paver,

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which we would call the red
bricks in the back were removed by

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hand and replaced in order to
ensure that the ground was leveled

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to prevent trip hazards for our
students that have mobility

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issues and to ensure that it was
a safe environment to

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perambulate throughout the
course of the school day,

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the asphalt was removed.

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The courtyard was resurfaced
when we asked the Children,

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what they wanted to see in the
courtyard in the butterfly garden.

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One of the things that they
wanted to see was games.

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So we ensured that the Children
have an opportunity to have game

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art so that when they go outside
for recess or to play in the

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yard,

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they have opportunities to have
physical activities as a result

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of the game art that was placed
in the yard.

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Yes, the cherry blossom was
planted and already blossomed.

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It was a beautiful sight to see
and we look forward to the

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blossoms coming out again. Next
year,

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our butterfly garden has been
renovated and is ready to go.

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The students have begun planting
and the planters again for the

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season and they will work
throughout the summer in order to

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harvest and maintain all the
plants that have been planted in

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the garden. The contractors were
very kind.

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They even made sure that they
protected the tree and installed a

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little fence to ensure that the
tree survives the winter that

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could potentially damage the
tree.

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The tree was tanned to match the
planters in the back in order

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for us to have cohesion.

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And we thank you for joining us
today and we hope that you enjoy

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our reception and also tour of
the newly renovated butterfly

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garden and courtyard at P 34.

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Thank you so much and enjoy the
tour.