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New GHS, McAnally spaces unveiled
For a community in which major construction has become the norm in recent years, one project has come to an end.
And an eye-catching end it is for Greencastle Community Schools, as school officials unveiled the new spaces at Greencastle High School and McAnally Center to the public on Tuesday evening with an open house and ribbon cutting.
A few days ahead of the return of students to Greencastle Schools on Monday, community members got their first look at what School Board President Ed Wilson hopes will be “the crown jewel of the county.”
Supt. Jeff Gibboney briefly got a bit emotional reflecting on the long process, one that has encompassed all but five months of his tenure at GCSC.
“This is a big deal for our community,” Gibboney said. “We began this process in October of 2020 when we had a facilities study throughout our school district to look at improvements and repairs that needed to be made.”
From the beginning, the superintendent noted, the focus was on bringing the broader community into the fold.
“We engaged the community and got a lot of valuable input,” Gibboney said. “Really, this is a creation of everybody’s efforts coming together. We’re really proud of this process. I know it hasn’t always been easy. It’s been challenging, particularly on our kids and our teachers.”
Although Tuesday’s events centered on GHS and McAnally, the $32 million project has touched all five GCSC school buildings. At Ridpath Primary, Deer Meadow Primary and Tzouanakis Intermediate, the upgrades primarily centered on securing the main entrances for enhanced safety of students and staff.
At Greencastle Middle School, securing the entrance means completely relocating the front office so that school visitors no longer have direct access to the hallways on the way to the office. The other major piece for GMS was the upgrade to its science labs.
However, it’s the quite visible changes to GHS that led to Wilson’s “crown jewel” comment. Gibonney told the Banner Graphic back in September 2021, “Every high school classroom is going to be touched.” This also included upgrades to outdated science labs (including a new greenhouse), revamped learning spaces across the board, a transformation of the old library/media center into “The Hub” with a podcast room and eSports room, a new commons area, an upgraded and expanded cafeteria and the addition of a “fab lab,” which has also received funding from the City of Greencastle through its Redevelopment Commission.
However, nowhere are the changes more evident than in the construction of a connector between GHS and McAnally. Along with upgrades to entrances, the connector is yet another way of addressing student and staff safety, but the construction also provided an opportunity for additional physical education and athletic facilities.
These upgrades include the renovation and expansion of the auxiliary gym into two gym floors, as well as the addition of a new weight room, wrestling room and cardio room. Moving the weight and wrestling facilities out of the underbelly of McAnally also provides for much-needed additional locker room space.
The exterior space is accented by the Greencastle oval G logo and a welcoming, new upper entrance to McAnally Center that hosted the actual ribbon cutting.
Gibboney also made sure that not only were current board members Wilson, Megan Inman, Dale Pierce, Jimmy Beasley and Kathryn Dory thanked, but also three members who were part of the process.
“(We’re) appreciative of the board and their support, appreciative of our five new board members, but I also do want to mention Mike White, Brian Cox and Russell Harvey, who were also part of the initial steps of this process,” Gibboney said.
He also gave a nod to krM Architects, owner’s representative Kramer Companies, general contractor Weddle Brothers and various subcontractors, some of which have community ties.
“Many people have contributed their time and talents to our amazing spaces,” Gibboney said.
Wilson made sure to give credit to Gibboney as well, who has devoted untold time and energy to the project.
“We’re really proud to showcase what we have here at Greencastle School Corp.,” Wilson said. “As the newly-appointed president, I’m proud to have Mr. Gibboney on my side here. He’s done a great job with this. He came to us when I came on four years ago with a plan, with a vision and he’s seen it come forth now, and it’s very nice.
“We’re very proud of the architect that came in and planned this for us and brought it to fruition for what we need, as well as the community for backing us and supporting us.”
Newly-appointed GHS Principal Yolanda Goodpaster, who has been in the building as assistant principal for the duration of the project, turned the attention to the students.
“We are so excited, and I cannot wait for the kids to see this building,” she said. “They have lived this for four years. Some students that have graduated a year and two years ago have lived it but haven’t gotten to see the outcome, so we’re excited for the returning kids. It’s been a lot of blood, sweat and tears for this project, but the end is totally worth it. So excited for our kids to see it on Monday.”
With that it was actually turned over to a group of students, not administrators, to cut the ribbon on the new space. Not only were students involved, but everyone present was invited to fill the steps and take part.
“It’s really amazing when a community comes together and provides a safe connector, improved academic spaces, improved safety and obviously there were also some enhancements to extracurricular spaces,” Gibboney said. “We’re just very proud of that.”
