Last week, Crandall ISD held a groundbreaking ceremony celebrating the official beginning of construction on its ninth school in the district. The new middle school, scheduled to be open in the fall of 2022, will be the district’s third campus to be located within the Heartland development.
CISD Communications Officer, Chris Moore, opened the ceremony by welcoming those in attendance and introducing many of the district’s partners on the project. Despite an overcast morning, representatives from the design team at WRA, Gallagher Construction, and the project management group from CBRE were all in attendance, as well as numerous other city, school, Crandall ISD Education Foundation, and Heartland Education Foundation partners.
Rick Harrell, President of the CISD School Board, also welcomed attendees and shared that not only will this new state-of-the-art facility create space for an additional 1,200 students in the growing district, but the building is also the first CISD campus to have its own built-in tornado shelter. Noting that this addition to the district would not have been possible without the teamwork that has already taken place and will continue to be the theme behind the success of the project, Harrell specifically thanked the other Trustees of the CISD School Board: Mike Wood, Jennifer Hiser, Ryan Eskridge, Stacie Warren, Amy Barber, and Dr. Sharon Long. “Together with our superintendent, Dr. Wendy Eldredge, we were able to make this vision a reality.” He went on to say, “The support we have received throughout this process is immeasurable. It was with [the community’s] approval in passing the 2017 bond that this building was able to be constructed.”
District Superintendent, Wendy Eldredge, echoed these remarks, thanking each group involved for their support. “This has been a historic moment,” she commented. “Frankly, there has not been a more challenging time in recent memory to execute a project of this magnitude. But, together, we have set this project in motion and are well on our way to opening these doors in August of 2022.”
While overlooking the bustling construction site, Dr. Eldredge described a few of the features that will be found in this new facility. With two levels, the building will house an open-concept library, a stadium, a competition track, and a gymnatorium to accommodate the district’s outstanding fine arts program, among many other innovative elements. At 195,000 square feet, this middle school will be the district’s largest campus.
Construction updates can be found on the district’s website at www.crandall-isd.net.
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