After 18 months of waiting, the new State High buildings on the south side of Westerly Parkway opened their doors on Monday. All of the classrooms have moved to the new facility, but construction will continue into summer 2019.
State High held a pep rally, and the energy level was high.
Jeff Straub is a senior architect on the project. He said the new facilities focus on providing more space for small group instruction and one-on-one interaction.
“What you’re really seeing is a change in education from the 1960s to present day and actually looking forward,” he said.
The project will now move on to the next phase, building a new cafeteria and counselors’ offices. When completed, the new school will have 50 percent more square footage than the old one.
School district residents voted in 2014 to fund $85 million of the construction through increased property taxes over 30 years. State College Area School District superintendent Bob O’Donnell said he’s grateful for the support from the community.
“Despite our pride at this stage, we just can’t relax, because we do have a year and a half remaining to the construction,” O'Donnell said.
State High will host a community open house in March.
