Conroe - Montgomery Edition | August 2022

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EDUCATION $145M Phase 2 upgrades at Conroe High School remain on schedule for 2025 wrap up, ocials say

BY JISHNU NAIR

UPGRADING CONROE HIGH SCHOOL

Easy Foster, Conroe ISD’s direc- tor of planning and construction, conrmed the district’s $145 million Phase 2 upgrade to Conroe High School remains on schedule for its 2025 completion during an Aug. 3 board workshop. At a June 22 meeting, Foster said there had been a temporary shortage of construction materials, requiring the district to nd alternate suppliers. “The cement issues this summer could have impacted an interim milestone for the project,” Foster said in an email. “However, as discussed at the [Aug. 3 board meeting], our contractors were looking at innova- tive solutions and were ultimately able to obtain the needed concrete in order to meet the interim milestone that we needed for the return to school in August.” Upgrades in progress The upgrades include revamping and reducing the campus’s points of entry, expanding the athletics center, and developing a career and technical education center. The school’s upgrade is nanced by a $653.5 million bond voters approved in November 2019. The athletics addition was com- pleted in time for the 2022-23 school year. Principal Tasha Smith said in a video on CISD’s YouTube page the addition contains multiple new gyms. Further additions include a new cafeteria, expanded hallways, and a career and technical education wing, which Smith said are intended to serve the growing student population. The November 2019 referendum was the second proposal to upgrade the high school’s facilities following the defeat of a proposal in May of the same year, Community Impact Newspaper previously reported. Students will remain on the cam- pus for the duration of construction. Foster said the option to relocate students was considered but rejected. “Conroe High School is home to over 4,000 students, and after analyz- ing the main building’s infrastructure and the remaining life in newer

• Athletics wing with multiple gyms • Career and technical education center • New cafeteria • Expanded hallways

105

Flipping entrance from Hwy. 105 to Wilson Road

Conroe ISD ocials said when completed, Phase 2 upgrades are intended to combine Conroe High School’s six buildings, reducing entry points. (Rendering courtesy Conroe ISD)

INVESTING IN UPGRADES Conroe ISD has allocated a portion of its 2019 bond funds for renovations to Conroe High School. $145 MILLION for Phase 2 upgrades to CHS anticipated to be completed in 2025

Conroe High School could reach

7,000

students by 2028, according to Superintendent Curtis Null.

SOURCE: CISDCOMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER

making up Conroe High School will be combined into one building, which would also reduce over 100 entry points into the building. The campus’s entrance will also be moved from Hwy. 105 to Wilson Road, eectively ipping the entrance to the high school, according to videos on the bond site. The city of Conroe has previously widened Wilson Road to a four-lane road and added sidewalks Foster said safety upgrades to the campus are “reviewed whether the build is complete or still under con- struction” and that “recent events” in Texas had heightened awareness of school safety but had not altered the plan. “We are proud to have taken a proactive approach over the years to add secure vestibules, security cam- eras and emergency response signal repeaters in addition to other safety enhancements to our facilities,” Foster said. “The Conroe High School project includes the most recently approved safety and security items.” in 2018 and 2019, respectively, Community Impact Newspaper previously reported.

portions of the campus along with not having space to relocate the student body, the decision was made to work at the occupied campus over several years to accomplish the goals of the project,” Foster said. Sarah Blakelock, the district’s director of communications, cited the “desirability of the community” when highlighting CISD’s growth: The school district grew by over 3,000 students in 2021-22, she said. CISD averages 1,500 new students per school year, according to Blakelock. Superintendent Curtis Null said March 25 in an address during the Lake Conroe Region Outlook that Conroe High School is estimated to approach 7,000 students in 2028 and is the fourth-largest high school in Texas. As such, he said the campus overhaul is intended to allow the district to extend the life of the 60-year-old campus by another 60 years instead of building a new campus. Combining the campus According to information from CISD’s bond website, the six buildings

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CONROE MONTGOMERY EDITION • AUGUST 2022