The construction of a new path and the eradication of invasive species of plants took place in the biology courtyard in order to make it more accessible for handicapped students and to provide a healthier learning environment.

“Although I could have done something else, I really wanted to do this because I was able to contribute to the biology courtyard,” Tom Stamatakos ’16, Eagle Scout, said.

Stamatakos was the leader of this project, and he prepared and planned everything that went into the task. He encouraged his fellow Eagle Scouts to come and 22 scouts came out to support and assist with the construction and eradication on September 12, 2015.

Katherine Stamatakos ’18 helped her brother Tom throughout the job.

“Well for my brother, he’s super interested in biology, so it seemed like the right project for him,” Katherine said.

The project took an enormous amount of preparation. Throughout several months, Tom had to gather and purchase all of the supplies, tools, and materials necessary, as well as work with biology teacher David Stormont to set a date and figure out the logistics.

“The hardest part of the project was the planning because it took so much time,” Tom said.

Although the task took a lot of time and effort, the new and improved courtyard will be an extremely positive impact on South Campus, Tom said.

“I think it was a cool thing to be able to give back to the school and come back a few years from now and see his work paid off and being used by students and teachers,” Katherine said.

Along with the time it took to plan the reconstruction of the courtyard, with the help of Tom Stamatakos’ fellow Eagle Scouts, the actual task took six and a half hours.

“They came to provide support and lend a hand,” said Tom.

Within the troop many of the scouts will help each other out with Eagle Projects to be good friends, and because they know that the other scouts would do the same for them.