STARKVILLE — The Ward building at Henderson Ward Stewart Elementary School will soon be renovated to a 21st century facility, school district officials said.
Through the Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District’s facility revocation campaign, Building for Excellence, the district will complete improvements to every school districtwide, beginning with HWS.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the district administered a facility study for every school building to identify potential renovation needs. Board of trustees president Sumner Davis said this study allowed the district to create a 5-year capital improvements plan consisting of major renovations, such as renovating the Ward building, to smaller improvements, such as redoing bathrooms in some school buildings.
The district issued a little over $8 million in bonds to fund these projects, but after the district received nearly $24 million in American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary Schools Emergency Relief funds, Davis said some of the district’s local money was freed up to expand projects on a quicker time frame.
“Being able to look at a combination of federal and local money that we had already had for the Ward building on the hill was one of those projects that was at the front of immediate need,” Davis said. “We needed to get that building in a shape that was functionable and usable for our students.”
The Ward building is the northernmost building on the HWS campus on Highway 182. Some of the renovations to this building include new roofing and HVAC systems, LED lights throughout the building, acoustical ceilings, energy efficient thermal windows and new flooring. New technology, such as audio enhancements and interactive displays, will also be installed to create dynamic physical learning environments that are comfortable and inviting for students, built for 21st century learning, SOCSD Public Information Officer Nicole Thomas said.
Thomas said renovations at HWS are swiftly underway, with an anticipated completion and reopening of August 2022.
“They’ve fully completed the tearing down of the flooring and taking everything down to the bare bones of the building,” Thomas said. “They’ve completed that part and already replaced the windows.”
In the early 2000s, when the new classroom corridor was constructed at HWS, Thomas said the district was discussing plans to potentially demolish the building. But as the district’s enrollment grew and consolidation occurred, a need for space increased.
Students who typically have class in the Ward building, second graders, have been spread to classrooms at the other buildings at HWS during construction, Thomas said.
After work is completed at HWS, AJHS is next on the list. The board voted Tuesday to advertise for bids for improvements to AJHS, including renovations to the gymnasium, interior painting and new ceilings, lights and HVAC replacement to Building A.
While SOCSD is in the beginning stages of its capital improvement plan, Davis said the board, along with everyone else throughout the district, continues to prioritize meeting the needs of students.
“We as a district — the board, administration, everyone involved in this project — want to provide world class facilities for all of our students across the district in all of our buildings,” Davis said. “We have made a commitment as a district to invest the money back into those buildings so that we are keeping up with the times and have the appropriate infrastructure for our students to have a world-class facility to come into every day and learn.”
HWS Principal Julie Fancher said she believes improvements to the Ward building will not only enhance school facilities but also student academic performance and teacher retention rates.
“The building renovations being made to the Ward Building will positively impact academic and social performance,” Fancher said. “The learning environment will be more conducive for student learning with improvements being made to the entire building… We couldn’t be more excited. I know our students will be happy, and happy children make for happy teachers.”
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