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August 21, 2015
Members of the Granbury ISD steering
committee that developed the November 2013 bond proposal for had a chance to
view progress on the construction at Granbury High School. The walk-through tour was held on August 21,
2015 – just three days before the start of the 2015-16 school year.
Attending along with
superintendent Dr. James Largent were assistant superintendents Ron Holmgreen
and Dobie Williams, facilities director Randy Leach, curriculum director Sharon
Williams, technology director Amy Wood, GHS principal Jeremy Ross, school board
president Mark Jackson, and school trustees Nancy Alana and Micky Shearon. Bond
committee members participating were Gary Best, J.C. Campbell, Todd Garner, Bruce
Lockwood, Kevin Myers, and Mike Scott. Others
attending were Mayor Nin Hulett, Granbury ISD Education Foundation president
Stacy Mitchell, GEF board member Kelly Garner, and former GHS theater director
Phil Groeschel.
Construction
at the high school began last November and will last through the summer of
2016. The Buford-Thompson Company is the construction manager at-risk for all
GISD bond projects and is working alongside the Huckabee architectural
firm. Attending the tour were BTC site
manager Scott Barnes and Huckabee representatives Paul Thompson and Tami O’Neal.
The renovations and additions
to the high school campus are part of the $84.9 million bond program approved
by GISD voters in 2013. Additions are for career and technical education, fine
arts, ninth grade academic classrooms, and office area with a secure entry. The
plan also includes building a robust technology infrastructure for model
classrooms throughout the school district.
The design features a
collegiate look with Granbury stone to be used prominently to provide a
consistent look throughout the exterior of the building with entry points
clearly distinguished for parents and visitors. Inside, a commons area will be the focal point of the interior with the
cafeteria, library, and coffee bar similar to a university student center.
Academic departments will be
grouped, with teachers having a common office area to meet individually with
students, for tutoring, and for collaboration with their colleagues. Hallways
will be streamlined to provide efficient corridors for student movement and
supervision. In addition, CTE programs will be centralized in the back of the
building with a separate secure entry as well as classrooms and labs designed
specifically for those specialized programs.
This August, the campus will
open to students with a ninth grade addition that includes a new office area
along with the new learning commons and cafeteria, realigned offices for
assistant principals and counselors, new classroom space for special education
programs, expanded space for fine arts programs, and renovated locker rooms and
sports medicine areas in the field house and James Wann Sports Center. The front of the building features a new
wayfinding trellis and courtyard area with a parent drop-off and pick-up lane
that aligns with Pirate Drive. In
addition, the school has new parking lots as well as a new area for the bus
transportation hub and marching band practice grid.
Fall 2015 construction plans
will continue work on the career and technical education center addition,
renovation of the auditorium and science classrooms, realignment of space in
the lower grand hall for the Marine Corps JROTC program, and construction of
new locker room space for tennis, softball, and baseball teams.
