As students walk into the high school on schedule pickup day, they look around in shock at the sight before them.
Windows looking into the counselor’s center.
The wide hallway leading to the cafeteria.
Sunlight flooding the cafeteria through the tall windows.
Construction for this area started in August 2023 and finally, after 12 long months, this area will be ready for the first day of school, August 12.
The cafeteria, almost double the space of the cafeteria last year, has four types of seating— high top tables, wide round tables, the traditional long tables, and booth seating. The serving line is set up in what assistant principal Neal Kiser calls “a college style,” with multiple lines for different meals, two drink coolers and grab-and-go options. This means students can skip the line and just grab a sandwich or salad. Past the serving line is a black and gold colored wall with built-in microwaves for students who bring lunch from home.
“This is the coolest feature,” Mr. Kiser said. “It’s definitely an upgrade from last year and it will be really convenient for students.”
There is also a set of restrooms, decked out in new amenities such as floor-to-ceiling stalls and high-power hand dryers.
In addition to the cafeteria, there is a new counselor’s corner— it has wide windows looking in, spacious offices for each counselor, and a conference room for meetings.
More instrument storage and practice room for band students was also added with the extra space from the construction.
“Last year there were 80 students in band and now we have over 100, so the new space was needed,” senior drum major Deanna Dyer said.
The other big construction project was the field house — something Texas Football Life calls, “the nicest high school field house in the nation.”
There are floor to ceiling windows when you walk in.
To the right is a player’s room, decked out with massage chairs, arcade games, and a gaming console. Past that is the varsity boy’s locker room filled with rows of wide lockers donning the nameplate of each player, showers, and leather couches. There is also a training room for muscle rehabilitation and student trainers.
To the left of the front glass door is an elevator and a set of stairs leading to the spacious top floor. The top floor houses the boys’ coaches offices, an AV room for students to control the jumbotron screen, a theater style room for watching film, conference rooms, and a VIP lounge with a balcony overlooking the field for athletic boosters during home games.
With the male athletes moved to the new field house, their space in the older field house was renovated into a lounge and dressing room for female athletes. The walls are lined with vanity desks and LED mirrors, and massage chairs in the middle of the room.
“They’ve got this space to do homework, and hair and makeup — all that girly stuff,” Mr. Kiser said.
After 12 months and millions of dollars, these major construction projects are finishing up right in time for the school year.
“I just hope everybody takes care of this stuff,” Mr. Kiser said. “There were a lot of resources put into these facilities and we want students to be proud of them.”