Moody breaks ground on new high school

By Hannah Curran, Editor

MOODY — Moody broke ground on a new high school at 10 a.m. on Friday, April 29.

Moody High School Rending (Photo by Ron Burkett)

“This starts the process of us building a new high school,” MHS Principal Dr. Chris Walters said. “It’s gonna take several years to get through this process, but we’re super excited about the opportunity to build a new high school.”

Moody Junior High School (MJHS) and Moody High School (MHS) had limited space and classrooms. With the tax referendum passing in Moody by eight votes for proposed taxation 928 and against proposed tax 920, Moody will continue to grow. As a result, Moody will now be able to build a new high school, a performing arts center, renovate Moody Elementary School (MES), Moody Middle School (MMS) would receive a new outdoor PE facility/playground area, and the MJHS would move to the current MHS and be renovated for the students.

Related Story: Moody Middle School hosts groundbreaking for new playground

St. Clair County Superintendent Dr. Mike Howard said this groundbreaking not only means a lot for moody but shows the other St. Clair County areas that did not pass the tax increase what they could have received.

“It’s the moments where the true partnership between the community and the school system becomes one, and by us breaking ground today to move forward with a Moody High School project, we’re going to be able to expand this area for years to come,” Howard said. “What I hope to gain from today is that other communities can see that the partnership between Moody and Moody High School and the school board of education is very strong and that they too can do the exact same thing if they were able to vote in November for their ad valorem increase.”

Howard said St. Clair county needs more schools and more facilities, and through this partnership with the community through a tax referendum, those opportunities are possible.

“Without it, it’s going to be very difficult to build new schools with limited resources,” Howard said.

Related Story: Voters deliver a new high school to Moody

Moody High School Exterior Design

MHS uses the 15-millage increase to build a new high school and a performing arts center with a 2,000-seat auditorium, sound stage, sound system, orchestra pit, and “green” room for media publication with a recording studio. MHS would also implement a 21st Century STEM and science labs with a robotics area.

“We’ll be able to build the school and the performing arts center and football renovations to meet the needs of moody high school for a long time from now, not just from where we are at this moment,” Howard said.

A new competition gymnasium, cafeteria, and bus access road would be built. In addition, they would build a room for a band that accommodates the entire band, including large and small group ensemble areas. The 15 millage increase allows agriculture science, family and consumer science, and Business electives in the building.

The football field would be renovated into a turf field. MHS would also add a modern media center with a cyber café.

“The moody community has been so supportive of when we first started and just put the mechanism in place,” Walters said. “We very easily put together a group that said look, this is what our kids need. That’s what our students need to grow. This is what our community needs to continue growing in.”

Walters said it’s exciting to see that process unfolding after the close ad valorem vote.

“It’s a time of growth; it’s the time of continuing to watch our kids,” Walters said. “We’re making strides, but being able to see down the road of ‘look what we’re gonna be able to do’ and ‘look how much better we’re gonna be able to be when we get to the new building, and we get the new space,’ and our kids are excited and engaged every day because we’ve got a new building.”

The renovation of the MHS football field will start next week.