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Shad Kraftson

Assistant Principal Bill Howlett talked to community members about the new changes. "I'm most excited about what is happening in music and theater," Howlett said. The open house at Oak-land saw visitors who were mostly supportive. At the Stillwater open house Sept. 28th, the discussion was more heated.

The new renovations in the high school will make seniors and juniors want to stick around for the 2017-2018 school year. Sophomores are in for a treat their senior year as many excited features will be added to the building.

Thanks to the passing of a bond last spring, the district will expand the high school to allow for the addition of ninth graders. The nearly $50 million addition may seem pricey, but looking at the designs it is obvious that the money is well spent. The district will also spend $26 million on a new elementary school.

Cafeteria and Science Lab Changes

The most intriguing addition for students may be the additions to the cafeteria. The lunchroom will be opened up and more space and tables will be added. The congestion in and out of the cafeteria is ridiculous, but there is a solution to that too.

“The trophy cases and doorways will be taken out,” Assistant Principal Bill Howlett said, adding “we will put in a grill and coffee shop.” More round tables will be added and will be accessible for students to work at throughout the day.

Besides lunch, science labs are many students’ favorite learning activity. Currently the labs are small, crowded and outdated. Staci Bartlett’s “lab” (which will be moved) is a bunch of ovens and stoves which work well for making “cell pizza” but not for most other labs. The renovation of the school will do plenty to address the situation.

The addition will include “nine new classrooms mostly for science,” Howlett said, adding “different classes need different rooms. Physics will have a room specific to physics.”

In addition to new labs, the current science labs will be remodeled based on college type models. This means that where there are currently three small classrooms, there will instead be two larger classrooms.

Howlett said, “We want to match collegiate models to give students a sense of college. So far, this is the leading model.”

Other Important Changes

With the addition of another grade, the school will be short on space for music rehearsal and storage. The district has anticipated this and they will be converting existing rooms into space for music.

“New ninth graders need practice space and storage for music classes,” Howlett said, adding that in one of the new rooms a “30-40 person choir group can rehearse in one spot.”

The changes in the school are not restricted to music and science. Another feature is the addition of another art room. Rather than adding a room for art, the school will convert the newspaper and yearbook publications room into an art room. So, what about yearbook and newspaper?

“There will be a new newspaper room and yearbook room with a studio and publications area,” Howlett said.

Despite all the positive changes, there are some concerns such as overcrowding. Many, however, would argue that the school will become less crowded.

“Our hope is that the expansion will reduce the crowding,” said Principal Rob Bach.

Adding students to the school will also mean the addition of a Pony Center and more lockers. It seems that another school color will need to be added in order to name the new center. As for the lockers, they will be wider and will be stacked one on top of another.

The new locker bays will also provide work space for students. Bach wants to be sure “that there are places for students to collaborate with each other, work independently or in small group projects, and that there’s space deliberately allocated in the building for them to be able to do that.”

New Elementary School

Although it does not pertain to high school students, it is also worth noting that the district is adding a new elementary school as well. It will be located in Woodbury and will solve overcrowding issues in the southern end of the district. Some students who would today go to Andersen, Afton-Lakeland, Lake Elmo and Valley Crossing will attend the new school.

“The capacity is 450 students,” said Mark Drommerhausen Principal on Special Assignment. “There will be 3 classes per grade,” he added.

All of the building changes are exciting however many are optimistic that the changes are more than just changes to the schools, themselves.

“It isn’t just physical, but hopefully there is a bit of philosophical change that comes along with that too,” said Bach.