By JAN McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Normally graffiti is frowned upon in school buildings. But on Wednesday, Bowling Green High School students were given the pens and told to leave their marks on the first steel beam to be erected in the new high school.
“I wasn’t sure if kids would get into it or not,” BGHS Principal Dan Black said as he stood outside while students put their signatures on the beam. “But they’re really into it. They think it’s super cool that this will be in the new school.”
The autographed steel beam will be erected in the southeast corner of the new school’s academic wing, Black said.
Some students penned their expected graduation years next to their names, and others tacked on their phone numbers.
The night before the students signed the beam, the BG Board of Education, Superintendent Ted Haselman, Treasurer Matt Feasel, and Black autographed the beam prior to a school board meeting.
On Wednesday, high school students and staff got their chance to go outside for signing during their lunch periods.
Even the juniors and seniors – who won’t get to attend the new high school – wanted to leave behind their marks on the new facility.
Brody Maxey, a freshman, will spend his last two years of high school in the new building.
“It’s a cool thing,” Maxey said after signing the beam. “It’s going to be in our new school – and I’m going to be a part of that.”
Jake Hunter, a sophomore, was one of the last students to squeeze his name on the steel beam Wednesday.
“It means a lot. It’s the future of Bowling Green – it’s super cool,” Hunter said.
Sophomores Lily Wagner and Reese Miklavic, who will be among the first senior class in the new building, are looking forward to the new school.
“It will be new and nicer, and won’t smell weird,” Wagner said.
Ground was broken in May for the three-story, 55,000-square-foot building set to open in the fall of 2027. Over the previous two years, more than 50 different layouts were discussed for the new $72.8 million school.
The district contracted with DLR Group for design work, and Rudolph Libbe for construction. At the school board’s request, the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission has committed to paying 17% of the new high school construction expenses that the state is willing to fund. That state share is expected to be close to $10 million.
The original site plan approved by the state cited building capacity at 642. That had to be boosted for current student enrollment of 880 – with flexibility to grow to handle 970 students.
The first digging on site was for geothermal wells. Those wells, paid for by the Inflation Reduction Act, will reduce energy consumption at the new school to half of the typical K-12 school building. That will add up to a savings of $25 million over 50 years.
The new high school will be located in the southwest portion of the district’s property on West Poe Road. The front portion of the existing high school will be demolished, and the northern portion will be converted into an activity center.
The campus will have a lot of great green space. There will be many windows with laminated glazing for safety, and “branding” with use of scarlet and charcoal colors.
The new high school will have three floors with 26 learning spaces in its academic wing, and two floors in the gymnasium area.
The school was designed to make students want to be there.
Upon entering the main entry to the high school, people will encounter the “heart of the school” – the Commons and dining area, which will be similar to colleges with “more grab and go options.” Unlike most school cafeterias, which are used only for lunch and study halls, the 4,000-square-foot Commons area will be used as a space for class collaborations.
Leading to the second floor will be the “Learning Stairs” which will be used for presentations and discussions.
Windows will be used throughout the building – such as in the media center, ag education, and art classrooms.
The classroom furniture will not be traditional desks lined up in rows. Many of the classrooms will have moveable walls that will allow for collaboration between teachers.
The gym, on the north end of the building will have bleacher seating for 1,750, with a main basketball court and two practice courts, a main volleyball court with two practice courts, and some pickleball courts. The second level of the gym features a two-lane circular track above the gym.
Next to the gym will be rooms for band, choir and drama classes.
Board members Norm Geer and Ryan Myers have been school board liaisons during the building design process.
