The School Buzz: Canon City HS students present bold, new upgrades to school’s theater

Two students are stepping up at Canon City High School to help those with disabilities.

Atalia Fisher and Chloe Martin are both students with disabilities.  They’re involved with Thespian Troupe, band, and show choir. And as part of what’s called a “capstone project,” they both recently took it upon themselves to put together a presentation, standing up in a board of education meeting, and showcase why there needs to be substantial improvements to their school’s theater.

Atalia and Chloe went over remodeling options and costs to make sure the CCHS auditorium is more accessible to those with disabilities. They proposed: wheelchair ramps, hearing amplifiers, captions, space between the curtain and backstage, braille signs, an ASL translator, headphones for noise sensitivity, and railings for staircases – they seemingly thought of everything.

School leadership said Atalia and Chloe’s recommendations were “well received” by the board.

Chloe said, “After doing research, we discovered that our auditorium and the spaces around it are not up to ADA standards, so we decided to (present a) [sic] prototype and suggest changes to our school board. She added, “These changes not only make theater more accessible for audience members, but also for those on stage and backstage.”

If the school board decides to move forward with their designs, Chloe says her and Atalia are ready to make their prototypes a reality.

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