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player ready...Ongoing construction efforts in High School District 218 will continue through the end of the year, as the board begins looking to phase 4 of projects, district officials said Tuesday.
If the school board approves bids in December, construction would begin in summer 2027.
The district expects to spend $21 million this fiscal year and $10 million in fiscal year 2027-28, said spokesperson Andrea Azzo.
Superintendent Josh Barron said five years ago, the district examined its buildings to determine which require the most attention, and made a list of smaller projects they wanted to pursue.
“We’ve decided we’re going to go big,” Barron said.
Jose Pareja, president of JP Architects, said phase 4 includes proposals to improve the schools’ learning environments and academic opportunities.
Pareja said the kitchen at Shephard High School in Palos Heights would be remodeled, and Shepard along with Eisenhower High School in Blue Island would get two updated kitchens.
Barron said culinary classes and other electives really draw students in, and these new updates will open them up to more students.
Board member Candice Cantelo said she thinks baking especially is of interest to students.
One item the district’s radar is renovating old locker rooms.
Barron said officials need to coordinate discussions with principals, consider how these changes may affect physical education classes and look at what other schools are doing.
“What we really need to find though is what the locker room looks like today versus what lockers were used for 20, 30 years ago when we were going to school,” Barron said.
Barron said he is optimistic the district will be able to complete all pending projects over time.
“I really think over the next three or four years we can really tighten up the buildings and modernize a lot of spaces and really get into the classrooms,” Barron said.
Pareja outlined classroom renovations underway at Eisenhower, such as in the band and choral rooms.
Projects also include converting the weight room in the basement of Shepard into a yoga studio and Reserve Officers Training Corps area, which will create more space, Pareja said.
He said the district is considering branding by having consistent color schemes and flooring in the updated classrooms, which he outlined in the phase 4 design plan.
“The district is really starting to brand all the buildings and keep everything consistent, so there’s a lot of new platforms throughout the district,” Pareja said. “As classrooms start to get updated, that’s when they are going to start to look the same.”
Shepard broke ground in May 2025 on a field house designed to open up more opportunities to students and support athletic opportunities. It is estimated to be completed by Halloween.
Eisenhower also has a 35,000-square-foot field house that opened December 2025.
While Richards High School in Oak Lawn is not getting a field house, Pareja said improvements to its gym are expected to be completed by Jan. 1.
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The main office at Richards was relocated to the front of the building, which opened up more space. Remaining renovations to the entrances are expected to be completed by November.
Plans to renovate the main entrances of Eisenhower and Richards moved forward in March 2026, at a cost of $4.26 million.