This high school opened in 1973, and other than a few areas that were renovated or replaced, most of the building dates back 40 years. The hallways were drab and dark, and the cafeteria was uninviting. A half-cent sales tax allowed much-needed repairs and renovations to occur, including this project.
The renovation not only gives an old school a new “facelift,” but serves to reinforce the importance of education in the county. Improving the first impression that students and visitors experience accentuates the school’s position as a high performing institution.
Major entrances now offer inviting social spaces to encourage informal collaboration between students and faculty. Corridors are no longer dark and gloomy, but feature new finishes, textures and lighting that offer more natural wayfinding. Classrooms and support spaces have been renovated to provide all new finishes, lighting, data cabling, and plumbing. The existing dining facility is now more transparent, with a large glazed wall on one end that brings in natural light and opens up the previously cramped and dark space. A new food court option, new serving lines and seating areas, new graphic banners, a commons area, and a reorganized trophy case and “wall of fame” enliven the previously drab setting. The new exterior glass wall now leads to an outdoor dining patio framed by fabric awnings.
