LCHS Plans Remodel And Expansion
As Lancaster Catholic High School (LCHS) prepares to start construction on a new STEM Innovation Center, Phase 1A of the largest remodel effort in the school's more than 90-year history, school president Tim Hamer is looking forward to equipping the building to match the curriculum. "The once-in-a-lifetime rebuilding was informed by what we need to do to teach what we want to teach," said Hamer.
LCHS chose Marotta/Main Architects to design the remodel after holding a competition. "The beauty of this (plan) is the efficiency of being within the existing footprint of the school," said Hamer. "We are repurposing space." The renovation, which will also include a Student Commons and dining hall and a performing arts center, has its roots in the school's strategic plan. "We needed to modernize the facility to offer students 21st-century learning tools," explained Hamer. "That was the priority of our student plan."
A feasibility survey of the LCHS community was part of the research. "(We asked) what were the top priorities, and the answer was interesting," Hamer shared. "Exactly 50% thought that building a fine and performing arts facility and auditorium and modernizing the cafeteria was a top priority," said Hamer. "The other 50% thought that modernizing our STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) facilities was a priority."
Hamer noted that the request for STEM facilities fit well with curricular changes the school was already making. "We are rewriting our entire curriculum simultaneously with the strategic plan," said Hamer, who noted that LCHS will equip the center based on a STEM curriculum designed by leading educators called Project Lead the Way. "These are experientially based curricula for biomedicine, computer science, and engineering," he said. The STEM Innovation Center, which will replace the third floor of Riley Hall, is slated to be under construction before students leave school in May.
The new auditorium, which will replace the 1929 gym currently being used for presentations, and the Student Commons and dining area, which will replace the cafeteria built in 1974, will be Phase 1B, with construction scheduled for the summer of 2022. "We will be using the space that is now the cafeteria, which has no floor over it," said Hamer. "We will build the auditorium there because we can go up and stay within the footprint of the school." Hamer noted that a triangular courtyard that exists where the three wings of the school join together will be filled in and connected to the school library. "That is where the cafeteria and Student Commons will be moved so we can make room for the auditorium."
Through its Cherish - Love - Honor campaign, LCHS has raised nearly $9 million of the initial $12 million needed for the renovations. Hamer emphasized that no funds will be borrowed for the project. "This (plan) is far less expensive than the alternatives, and it allows for a better flow and use of space," he said, noting that the present building represents eras of construction that were decades apart. "This is a way to meld them together. It's very exciting."
To learn more about the building campaign, readers may visit http://www.cherishlovehonor.com.
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