Semester two has begun, and the students and staff of Humboldt Collegiate Institute (HCI) are settling into their new building.
February 1 was the students' first day of classes in the new facility. They spent the morning getting an orientation, going on tours, and doing other fun activities to get used to the new space. They then attended short classes in the afternoon.
They were excited to be there, believes HCI principal Keith Thompson.
"Some students were here... at 8 a.m. on the first day," he smiled, "so when the doors were opened, they were ready to go."
Connected to the Uniplex, the opening of the new school has been a highly anticipated event for everyone connected, Thompson indicated during a media tour of the new school, which now contains students and staff, on February 3.
The tour started off in the central gathering area just inside the front door, wound its way through the front office, to the Humanities wing, including four portable classroom units, then to the library, down the math and sciences wing, and through the backstage and stage area off the central gathering area, before heading over to the Arts wing - industrial, culinary and textile, and ending in the school's new gym - the floor of which is still hardening.
The school has some pretty special features, like Smart Boards in every room, and built-in sound systems. There's also enough natural light in every classroom that use of electricity to light them is minimal. The lights actually automatically dim and brighten depending on the lighting conditions from outside, Thompson noted.
Thompson pointed out the large science classrooms, the students at work at computers in the library, some new band equipment backstage, and showed where cosmetology chairs will be installed backstage, where those classes will take place.
He also pointed out the broadcasting heart of the school, located just off the stage, which will allow them to broadcast voices and faces to students on Smart Boards in their classrooms around the school.
This way, they can hold assemblies without having to have the students all in one place, he noted.
In the Arts wing, he pointed out the four new pottery wheels that are being installed, which will help instructor Roland Daum expand that program, and the computers in the classroom which will mean their programming expanding its digital design elements.
In the gym, when the floor hardens and students start to use it in mid-February, a large screen and projector will be installed, Thompson noted.
At the end of the tour, Thompson showed off the fitness facility in the shared link area between the school and the Uniplex. The school, he noted, will be providing the equipment for the centre, and its students will be allowed to use it during school hours. Just how the city will be opening it up for public use is something that has yet to be determined.
But with 2,500 square feet of space, Thompson believes the room should be able to fit 50 people at one time, and will accommodate not only the students of HCI, but city-run programs and the Humboldt Broncos hockey club.
The exercise equipment is just one example of new items purchased to furnish this new school. Very few things came over to the new school from the old, so students walked into classrooms filled with new tables, chairs, desks, shelving and lockers.
Teachers and other staff did move all of their materials over, but had new furniture to put it all into.
"We got a good budget from the Ministry," Thompson said of the money to purchase these new items.
Just what will happen to the old desks, computers and the like still in the old building is still being decided.
And the move in to their new space is still being completed, Thomspon noted.
"It's not done yet. We're still short some furniture, and there are still some deficiencies to work through," he said. "It's a brand new building - there are always going to be growing pains."
The transition to the new building is something that could not have been completed without the dedication of HCI staff, and the assistance of some students, Thompson noted.
"Some students have been in and out for the last two weeks. A number of the SRC came to help with the move, unpack and clean up," he said. "We had about 20 to 25 students volunteering their time. I don't know if we'd have been ready without them. It was a big job."
The job was actually bigger than they realized, he admitted, as they had about $400,000 of furniture to unpack, in addition to teaching materials, library books, computers and the like.
But everyone is happy to be in the new building, he believes.
"The teachers... you'd be hard-pressed to wipe the smiles off some of our staff's faces," he said.
"The vast majority of our staff put in long days," he said, working evenings and weekends for a couple of weeks, trying to get things ready for students.
"I'm proud of how the staff stepped up," he said. Many took on leadership roles, which helped make the move go more smoothly.
"It was a really good team-building experience for staff and for students," he stated.
The construction of the school is actually one part of a three-part construction project that's been going on at the Uniplex since early 2010. Irenovations to the Uniplex were undertaken in order to hook the school onto the building and better link all the facilities inside. As well, a Carlton Trail Regional College wing was built onto the school.
Now that the HCI students are in, Carlton Trail Regional College, whose wing was the last to be completed, is set to move into their new space beginning this week.
The link area between the school and Uniplex was completed in late 2011.
Money-wise, when construction began in 2010, it was reported that the Ministry of Education contribution to build the high school was $12.5 million, with a base bid for the high school component at $18.4 million. The Ministry of Advanced Education, Employment and Labour invested $4 million through the Knowledge Infrastructure Program to Carlton Trail Regional College. The Government of Canada also provided a financial contribution of just more than $2 million to help construct the wings to connect the school facility to the Uniplex.
The City, Thompson said, has been fantastic to work with through this process. They are currently looking at a shared-use agreement for the facilities belonging to both school and City.
They plan to offer the use of HCI to the community, Thompson confirmed.
"We have to work out the details, but we're quite excited about that."
Because of the access they hope to get to city facilities, Thompson is hoping to offer a hockey program at the school next year. He also wants to expand programming into the trades, photography, and Native studies.
"Humboldt is a growing community and it's growing more diverse every year," he said. Thompson wants to "make sure the school reflects the diverse nature of the community and the needs of the community moving into the future."
Growing is exactly what the student population of HCI is doing right now. There are currently between 350 and 360 students at the school, Thompson said - it's gone up in the past couple of weeks.
He believes they would be able to absorb between 30 and 40 more students in the new school as it stands. Any more than that, and they may have to look at adding on to the school already.
"There's no wasted space here," he said.
Some students at the school, when approached, agreed with that.
"It's small," one said.
Other students described their new environment as awesome, exciting and strange.
"It's like being in a movie," one girl noted.
The HCI School Community Council is looking to hold an open house with tours of the new school at the end of February, and a grand opening will likely take place later this spring.
