Four years after Lincolnwood School District 74 failed to push through a $25 million referendum to build a new junior high, Lincoln Hall students returned from summer break to find modernized classrooms and a new cafeteria.
Instead of rebuilding the decades-old school on Pratt and Crawford avenues, District 74 officials recently started spending from a slightly less budget — roughly $21 million total — for a complete renovation of the building that will span a few years.
Among the first projects construction workers completed over the summer was an 8,800 square-foot STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) lab for sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders, a sprawling food science room for modern-day home economics classes, and a 5,100 square-foot cafeteria and kitchen with eco-friendly appliances.
The new spaces, including “flexible learning” rooms built on each of the three floors, were designed for group instruction to make it easy for teachers to combine classes and for whole grade levels to meet together in a central space, district officials said.
The open classroom style also applies to the new food labs. Food science teacher Courtney Greene said her students are engaged more by having a combined room for lab work and instruction. Previously, classroom time was held in a separate space, she said.
“Having the labs right here in the classrooms helps kids see the scientific aspects of things more easily because they can be hands-on,” Greene said. “I can also respond better to questions because the setup of the room lets me see the kids at all times.”
The nine rooms remodeled over the summer included the library and art room, which was rebuilt with space for a kiln in the back. The setup lets the teacher monitor kids firing their pottery during class time.
New flooring and modern furniture also is noticeable throughout the building. About 25 percent of the lockers were replaced during the summer, said district board president Scott Anderson. The rest of the lockers will be installed during the second and third construction phases.
Noticeably missing from the mix of learning spaces are computer labs, which are now a thing of the past at Lincoln Hall. A new policy that allows each student to have their own iPad has eliminated the need for desktop computers in recent years, district officials said.
“I remember not too long ago when computer labs were something every school wanted,” said Superintendent Joseph Bailey. “Now, we’ve outgrown them.”
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Steering away from the notion that learning should no longer be relegated to desktop computers and textbooks, the STEM-teaching style pushes the boundaries of the traditional classroom by giving students more hands-on learning opportunities.
On the first day she welcomed students to her new eighth grade STEM classroom on Sept. 19, teacher Karlene Stecher asked kids to share their impressions of the room. The feedback was mostly positive, as kids approved of the lighting, acoustics and room’s open feel, she said.
“Everything about the way we teach has changed, where it’s not like the old days when teachers walked around the room handing out worksheets,” Stecher said. “Instead of the students coming up to the teacher’s desk to ask a question, I float around the room and go to them.”
The last part of the first renovation phase — a new student services area and a secure school entrance for $4.7 million — is expected to open by January, Bailey said.
The new main entrance will add layers of security to the building, including a holding vestibule covered in bulletproof glass for guests before they’re allowed into the building.
District 74 officials have said the outdated main entrance doesn’t meet modern security expectations.
The way the split-level main entrance is set-up now, guests have to walk up the stairs and meet a receptionist sitting at a small table, where the employee checks their ID and hands the person a nametag before sending them on their way.
“Right now, you could head downstairs without being seen if someone turns their head,” Bailey said. “That’s a huge concern, so we’re fixing that.”
Behind the main entrance, students would be able to access everything from the nurse’s office to social workers to the principal’s office — all located in the new student services area.
Next summer, work will begin to remodel gyms, locker rooms and fine-arts spaces. District board members still need to approve final project plans and award bids for those projects, so details on the second construction phase still are pending.
Bailey said virtually nothing in the building will be untouched by the time the entire project is done.
But Anderson said the renovation is what taxpayers, who voted against the referendum to tear down and rebuild Lincoln Hall, wanted.
“The message I received (from the failed referendum) was to repair and not replace,” Anderson said. “We’re doing what people asked us to do — fix it.”
District 74 is paying for a third of the cost with reserves and the remaining two-thirds is being paid for with bonds, according to Anderson.
Natalie Hayes is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.