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    Huntington Beach’s Sowers Middle School unveils new campus
    • February 23, 2024

    The Huntington Beach City School District on Thursday, Feb. 22, unveiled its new $72 million campus for Isaac L. Sowers Middle School, giving more than 750 students new classrooms with updated technology to learn in.

    The new campus sits next to the old one on Indianapolis Avenue in southeast Huntington Beach. Gone is the hexagonal design of the old campus building, replaced by rows of classrooms, with ample natural lighting, that face a large courtyard.

    The old honeycomb-shaped Sowers Middle School sits next to the new campus during a ribbon cutting ceremony in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Sowers Middle School Interim Principal Jeff Smith give a campus tour before a ribbon cutting in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Sowers Middle School ASB President, Catalina Barrera, address visitors during a ribbon cutting ceremony for their new campus in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Huntington Beach Mayor Gracey Van Der Mark takes a tour of the new Sowers Middle School campus before a ribbon cutting in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    The old honeycomb-shaped Sowers Middle School sits next to the new campus during a ribbon cutting ceremony in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Sowers Middle School ASB President, Catalina Barrera, address visitors during a ribbon cutting ceremony for their new campus in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    The old honeycomb-shaped Sowers Middle School sits next to the new campus during a ribbon cutting ceremony in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    The old Sowers Middle School sits next to the new campus during a ribbon cutting ceremony in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Sowers Middle School Interim Principal Jeff Smith give a campus tour before a ribbon cutting in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Students at Sowers Middle School welcome visitors to their ribbon cutting ceremony in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Members of the Sowers Middle School choirs perform during a ribbon cutting ceremony in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Officials from the Huntington Beach City School District cut the ribbon to the new Sowers Middle School campus in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    New STEM building at Sowers Middle School before a ribbon cutting in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Sowers Middle School Interim Principal Jeff Smith shows off a math classroom before a ribbon cutting in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Students at Sowers Middle School run down the main part of their new campus after a ribbon cutting in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Visitors to Sowers Middle School check out the new lunchroom that features table with graphics that include Huntington Beach landmarks before a ribbon cutting in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    Leisa Winston, the Superintendent of the Huntington Beach City School District, address visitors during a ribbon cutting ceremony for a new campus at Sowers Middle School in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    A New STEM classroom at Sowers Middle School before a ribbon cutting in Huntington Beach, CA, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The celebration marked the completion of the first phase of the project that built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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    “This new campus is a dream that I thought could never ever have happened,” said school board president Diana Marks while fighting back tears during a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

    Construction work isn’t entirely done yet. The first construction phase built 27 new classrooms and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building. The second phase will tear down the old campus and build a new gym, locker rooms and basketball and volleyball courts. That work won’t be done until early next year.

    The district’s board approved reconstructing the school back in 2021. Construction was funded by a combination of a local bond measure and money from selling the land where the old Gisler Middle School was.

    Before the district came up with the additional funding, it was going to have to try to modernize the existing campus facilities, Marks said. “Not ideal, but affordable.

    “It was the sale of Gisler that made the difference in creating the new campus we see here today.”

    Extensive work went into securing the land to prevent liquefaction during earthquakes, officials said, with 178 poles, each 90 feet long, drilled into the earth and connected with a network of beams.

    The new classrooms have touchscreens, microphones and adjustable natural lighting. Most of the classrooms were built in an off-site factory before being brought over for installation.

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    A resident in the area said there has been a problem during pick-up times with people starting to park in the neighborhood, causing frustration for many. District officials said the main parking lot is expected to be completed by summer.

    Paul Morrow, a school board member and former principal at Sowers, said the school’s opening signified the beginning of a new era.

    “The old Sowers is gone,” Morrow said. “The new Sowers is here.”

    ​ Orange County Register 

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