When students at Hadley Middle School and Homer Junior High School enter their buildings next week, Carolyn Short said she hopes their jaws drop, just as hers did when she saw the expansion and renovation project for the first time.
“I hope there’s a lot of pride,” said Short, the Homer Junior High School principal.
Construction began last year to create a 50,000-square-foot addition that connects the neighboring schools. Children in fifth and sixth grades attend Hadley Middle School while seventh and eighth grade students attend Homer Junior High School in Homer Glen.
The new addition includes a shared kitchen, cafeteria and library and a new junior high school gym. The $28.3 million project also included 30,000 square feet of renovations.
Between construction and renovating existing space, there will be 14 new classrooms, so teachers will no longer have to teach using carts, said Homer District 33C Superintendent Craig Schoppe.
A new fitness center will be available for junior high school sports teams as well as students who elect to take the foundations of fitness class. More offices have been added for staff.
“I think this was well thought out, well planned and fabulously executed to the finest detail,” Short said.
The space is flexible and will offer students a chance to take more electives, Short said. By connecting the two schools, students can travel between them to take courses such as band, choir, industrial arts or cooking, she said.
Students will also be able to take a “passion project” course to research and present on topics they find interesting, Short said.
While students won’t be welcomed back to their buildings until Tuesday, several hundred children and their families toured the schools during a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday.
Recent Homer Junior High School graduates Sydney Grijalva, Mercy Owotuyi and Maria Petrakos marveled at a classroom that once was their cafeteria.
“It’s so beautiful,” said Grijalva, now a freshman at Providence Catholic High School.
“It’s so fancy,” said Owotuyi, a freshman at Lockport Township High School.
The three girls said they are excited for their siblings, cousins and neighbors to begin school in the renovated buildings.
“We made so many good memories here,” Grijalva said.
Lucy Christoffel, 11, who is entering sixth grade, said the buildings are bigger and better.
“I like that there’s more space,” Christoffel said, adding the school feels welcoming.
Griffin Salah, president of the Hadley Middle School Student Council, said 1,700 students who attend the two schools will benefit from the expansion and renovation project.
“When I walked into the new building, I was stunned at how great it looked,” he said. “The library is larger. The lunchroom is awesome, and the classrooms are bigger and better than I thought they could be. What a great place to go to school.”
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Griffin challenged his classmates to take advantage of everything the schools offer. In turn, he said he knows that the teachers will prepare them for high school and beyond.
“We must apply our knowledge and skills to the best of our abilities, work with our teachers and be productive in our classes, take care of these resources and by our actions contribute to a kind and caring learning community each and every day,” he said.
District 33C board President Chris Trzeciak said the unveiling of the new buildings is a momentous occasion.
“If you look at the history of education in Homer Glen, you’ll see there is a lot of pride (and) there’s a lot of passion that goes into educating our children in this community,” he said. “This building is a physical representation of that.”
Students are the focus of the board’s efforts, Trzeciak said.
“That’s always the most important thing we think about as school leaders is what do we need to do that’s in the best interest of our children,” he said. “What do we need to do to make sure they have everything they need and then some to provide them the best learning environment possible.”
The renovation and expansion project came in on budget, Schoppe said.
While the majority of the spaces are ready for the school year, the gym floor will be installed next month after the proper humidity level can be reached to avoid damaging the new wood, he said.
Schoppe said the district staff and teachers are excited to see the students return. Crews will work for the next several days to put on the finishing touches.
“This new addition will serve our current and future Homer 33C students for years to come, and I hope is something that our entire 33C community is proud of,” Schoppe said.
Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.