Greenwood High School’s plan to remodel the original high school consists of remodeling the school entirely to create a new environment for the future students of Greenwood. With its second year of construction, the school has undergone renovations including the floors, torn out and replaced, the sports fields replaced with turf, parking lots working to be expanded, the old library being remodeled into classrooms, and as of recently the floors in the classrooms have been removed and replaced. Students and teachers have to work around the construction until it’s finished, more or less creating a controversy on whether or not the school should even be remodeled in the first place. But the construction crew and administration continue to take the next phases to continue the new remodel and are working week by week to find the most efficient and effective ways to get things done fast with the least amount of discomfort to the students of GHS.
Most students have a similar view on the construction, influenced by the way they have been working around the remodeling. Cassidy Willis, a junior here at GHS states how terrible the construction is for students. “I think it is really distracting to our learning in the environment we’re in. Like I’m walking down the hallway and I trip because there’s a tile missing that they have not replaced yet. Or when I’m sitting in a classroom and I can see the hanging lights with two wires holding it up because we don’t have ceiling tiles.” Along with another fellow Junior, Olive Jaynes says that it’s very “in the way”. Sarah Grace Shourds, a senior of Greenwood and class of 2025 remarks that it’s inconvenient and a bummer for her senior year. “The noise is crazy when you have a class that’s right next to it. It’s so loud and all you hear is drilling and banging and it interrupts everything, you get distracted by it.” Jaynes says that it’s her least favorite part of the construction. Shourds says her least favorite part of the remodel is the chaos of the parking lot, taking nearly a half an hour just to get out. The construction affects students daily, whether positive or negative. “I have to make a different route every day because of the blocked off hallways and the large crowds that I have to avoid.” Willis states how the construction affects her everyday life. Jaynes shares a very similar statement, saying, “Hallways. Just walking in the hallways. It’s so hard when you have a class that’s right across from the other but now you have to go all the way around due to the blocked off areas.”
GHS construction is set to be finished in 2026, the original date for the entirety of the remodeling to be completed. But, with floors taking two years to be replaced and much of the school still untouched or yet to be started on, students and teachers have been doubting the accountability of the set due date. “I don’t think it’ll reach the deadline.” Shourds states, making an estimation of the date being closer to 2030. “I don’t think it’s gonna be done by 2026. Cause’ I mean it took them this long to put the floors in dowstaris, two years to be exact, plus the cafeteria isn’t done. Nothings finished.” Willis says, noting the half-unfinished floors in the stairwells. “I feel like it’s going fast but I also feel like it’s going slow.” Jaynes re-marks. “Maybe next year since they’re replacing the floors pretty fast the deadline will still be set.” One thing that’s put students on edge is the lunch situation. With the old cafeteria being torn down, students have been eating in a makeshift cafeteria for the last year. “I think it’s a little weird that we have to eat in the gym, it’s interesting for the freshman last year and even this year they ever really got to use the cafeteria, they’re eating in a gym for their entire highschool.” Jaynes says. “I just really want a cafeteria. Like, really want a cafeteria.” Shourds simply states. As for Willis, she says that she hates it. There’s quote “not enough space and the food options aren’t great.” and says she often just doesn’t eat the lunch. But despite all of the negative opinions from the students, things will be looking up as the school continues its renovations. “I think it’ll be nice to have new environments, really. With the new sports area, like the batting cages, weight rooms and indoor turf I think that’ll be amazing for the future kids that’ll be going to school here.” Despite the upperclassmen not being able to enjoy the new school, in theory they agree that once the chaos is finished, Greenwood will be great.
With that being said, Greenwood has started its journey into becoming a newly renovated school for the betterment of the future generations that will continue to make their way through a high-school that is soon to look and feel much nicer. Although some doubt if it’s all really worth it, the renovations have started and there’s no going back. Whether sometime soon or many many years into the future Greenwood will look and be very different from the school it is today. To many students here, the old and original school will hold the title as their highschool that they attended. “I liked the original school. That was what I had when I first started and I thought I would have that for the rest of my high school.” Jaynes says. Shourds will be graduating this year, but she fondly remembers the cafeteria she misses all too well. Willis notes that the old school was fine, it just needed to be upgraded sooner due to the large amount of student body here. Even though the old Greenwood will soon look totally different, the construction leaves a reminder of what the old school looks like and what it will become.
