Students at West Springfield High School began to see the need and push for the first round of renovations to the school during the early 1980s. However, it wasn’t until 1988 that the school board awarded a contract of renewal to West Springfield. Following much debate between the school board, the Fairfax school system, and West Springfield parents, construction began in the late 1980’s. Shaping a new school ultimately affected the student’s learning environments and influenced them to such a degree that it became a regular topic in the school newspaper, “The Oracle”. Students used The Oracle to both criticize and advocate their support for the modernization of the school, illustrating the effect that restorations had on daily student life and the classes as a whole. Many students found the renovations disruptive to the learning environment, voicing their complaints to teachers and their peers. Large scale renovations to the school constituted a unique learning experience for West Springfield students during the final years of the decade and onwards into the 1990’s. Many students found the renovations disruptive to the learning environment, voicing their complaints to teachers and their peers.