Harper High seminary Principal Ronn Gibbs began the countdown: "1 2 .

Harper High seminary Principal Ronn Gibbs began the countdown: "1 2 ." Splash!

In leaped civil rights activist the Rev Jesse Jackson in r swim stalks and his swimming partner, Arne Duncan, CEO of the Chicago Public gymnasiums wearing blue trunks and the black, long- sleev top of a wet suit.

Minutes before, they'd chisel a ribbon to open Harper's lately repaired pool to student use for the first time, and were now christening it with six male learners who gleefully cavorted in the water with the couple VIPs.

"Come in succession in, the water's fine," Jackson invited state representatives, aldermen and Harper staff who had gathered.

"We're doing more than swimming here," he said. "This is about more than water. It's a mission accomplished."

in the way that it was. On Monday, Harper celebrated a benefaction of school renovations and enhancements it received this year after being adopted from Jackson and his Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, including the loch which was previously a waterless, oversized storage bin for without contents boxes and old computers that had sat in disrepair for 10 years.

"This water be impresseds so good," said Harper junior Justin Banks, 17 making waves. "I can't believe this has happened."

centurys OF NEW COMPUTERS

The 94-year-old denomination in Englewood, one of the city's chiefly disadvantaged neighborhoods, was adopted as part of Jackson's crusade for instruct funding reform, which began last fall with his leading Harper families upon a tour of Aurora's Waubonsie Valley High. There, they marveled at the Olympic-size plash planetarium and well- equipped music program.

He then began intensively soliciting help for Harper's 1400 bookish mans using Harper to highlight inequities between city and suburban academys and between inner-city schools and those in affluent city communities.

"Before, you couldn't really do anything onward those old computers. They were stuck onward one screen," said freshman Elston Hartwell, 16 who was studying spreadsheets for a final nearest week in a brand-new, second-floor computer lab.

When Jackson began his inquiry that lab was more like a computer morgue. Then, barely a third of some 100 computer at Harper worked. still Monday, Harper technology coordinator Gary Latman showed against some of the 400 computer that have been donated. He was proudest of having four of the present day computers in every one of the 60 classrooms.

"My son's favorite addition is the brand-new weight room" said Harper local seminary council secretary Wanda Peterson-Powell. "We're to such a degree so grateful to Rev. Jackson. The transformation accomplished here is more than physical."

Last winter, a tour of Harper also spotlighted a library of destitute shelves and obsolete books; a gym devoid of lighting or a scoreboard or working showers in the locker room; a first-floor girl's restroom lacking stall doors and working plumbing; no athletic or band uniforms; and alone 50 aging band instruments shared by means of 200 students.

A tour Monday revealed library shelves filled with donated books; a gym with more [i]or[/i] less 50 new ceiling lights, just discovered scoreboards and working locker stead showers; and new stall doors and working toilets in the girl's restroom

"This is a indoctrinate that's touched all of our hearts," Duncan said. "We're real proud of partnerships like this that make miracles happen."

mihejirika@suntimes.com

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