New marquees

New marquee boards installed at Oak Park High School

Caitlin Fowler/Talon
New marquee in the student quad where individual students can post personalized messages

Caitlin Fowler - Advisor

If students want to get a message out to the student body, they now have two, colorful options.

The high school administration and Associated Student Body have recently updated the campus marquees — one in the student quad and another facing Kanan Road.

The marquee located in the student quad is run by the Associated Student Body and is used for posting information on school events and posting messages submitted by student. On Kanan, the school posts information about events and businesses can buy and post advertisements as well. According to the Ventura County Transportation Department 2016 Figure, an estimated 13,600 cars will pass the Kanan digital sign daily.

“We have two marquees: we have what we call the street marquee, which is the big electronic sign on the entrance to the school, outside the admin building. That is a two-sided Marquee … that allows us to run messages on both sides,” Buchanan said. “We have another marquee, called the quad, which is mounted on the gym wall facing down where the kids congregate. It is an electronic sign made of LEDs that has been updated and now it has a million colors so we can run a lot of things.”

ASB hopes that through the use of this marquee, students will stay updated on school events and their specific dates. Some examples of messages already posted are updates on club week, college visits and cafeteria food.

“Teachers and club leaders can use this to announce dates or events that students might need to know. Another benefit is on a friend-to-friend basis. There is a marquee sign-up sheet where you can write whatever you like and give a shoutout to a friend or say ‘happy birthday,’” junior and marquee commissioner Ethan Kastenberg said.

Along with that, the marquee will help ASB fund their own events by bringing in school revenue. Clubs and organizations can also benefit through student purchases and advertisements. The marquee facing Kanan is specifically made for local business advertisements.

“Money from those ads goes directly to the club or the organization that found them,” Buchanan said. “All money will be directed right into their program. We don’t take anything off the top.”

In the future, more features might be added to these electronic boards. Buchanan is confident in the marquee’s possibilities.