Northern High School

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linkedin Email this link

Consultation has concluded

The existing Northern High School was built in 1953 and renovated 11 times between 1954 and 1994. At 39 acres and spread over three locations, the site is severely constrained (size, environmental), which creates inequities for students and staff.

The new Northern High School will be a three-story, 290,000 square foot building to be located at 4622 N. Roxboro Road. Out of 13 possible locations, this site was determined the most suitable for a 21st-Century High School building, with land to support the program needs of the Northern High School students and also conform to the requirements established by transportation, land use, and environmental regulations at the city, county, and state levels.

The new school will provide 85 teaching spaces, extensive Career and Technical Education offerings, and an auditorium with full performing arts educational spaces. The three-story classroom wing is connected to the gymnasiums, auditorium, performing arts, and CTE areas with a two-story collaborative commons and student dining area including a learning stair and Culinary Arts café.

General classroom spaces are supplemented with collaborative commons breakout spaces and provide multiple display surfaces to facilitate project-based learning skills. The media center is on the second story and overlooks the main commons.

Career and technical education spaces include two fully outfitted commercial culinary arts kitchens and a baking lab, family and consumer sciences, marketing and business, digital media, ROTC, EMT, fire, and public safety programs, automotive repair, and animal science and horticulture programs with an outdoor paddock, paved workspace, and greenhouse.

Arts spaces include visual art, band, chorus, dance, drama, and technical theater. The 800-seat auditorium is fully outfitted to support performing arts programming, providing large, flexible wing space, a catwalk, performance lighting, video projection, and AV capabilities. The performing arts learning spaces are direct across the corridor from the stage, providing flexible and direct access from the learning spaces to the performance space and to the loading dock.

The main gymnasium seats 1400 and is outfitted for basketball and volleyball tournaments. This is supplemented with an auxiliary gymnasium, locker rooms, weight and cardio training room, and wrestling space. In addition to the athletics facilities within the main building, the site also provides an athletics complex, including a 2500-seat stadium with football, track, and field facilities, a competition field for soccer, field hockey, and lacrosse, a multipurpose field, baseball, and softball fields, locker facilities, and tennis courts.

The new high school will break ground summer of 2021 and will welcome students for the fall semester of 2023.

Construction of the new NHS is set to begin in June 2021. As the project progresses, important information regarding construction and the site will be shared here.

View images from the Groundbreaking Ceremony.

Spring 2022 Update

  • Project is on schedule for substantial completion in May 2023.
  • Challenges like those seen throughout the construction industry have been present on this project as well…. price escalations, long delivery times for materials, crowded marketplace among subcontractors who are at or past their capacity.
  • Architect estimates the project is 40% complete.
  • Planning is well-underway for furnishings and technology equipment.
  • Road improvements at Roxboro recently bid, and work anticipated to start this summer.

The existing Northern High School was built in 1953 and renovated 11 times between 1954 and 1994. At 39 acres and spread over three locations, the site is severely constrained (size, environmental), which creates inequities for students and staff.

The new Northern High School will be a three-story, 290,000 square foot building to be located at 4622 N. Roxboro Road. Out of 13 possible locations, this site was determined the most suitable for a 21st-Century High School building, with land to support the program needs of the Northern High School students and also conform to the requirements established by transportation, land use, and environmental regulations at the city, county, and state levels.

The new school will provide 85 teaching spaces, extensive Career and Technical Education offerings, and an auditorium with full performing arts educational spaces. The three-story classroom wing is connected to the gymnasiums, auditorium, performing arts, and CTE areas with a two-story collaborative commons and student dining area including a learning stair and Culinary Arts café.

General classroom spaces are supplemented with collaborative commons breakout spaces and provide multiple display surfaces to facilitate project-based learning skills. The media center is on the second story and overlooks the main commons.

Career and technical education spaces include two fully outfitted commercial culinary arts kitchens and a baking lab, family and consumer sciences, marketing and business, digital media, ROTC, EMT, fire, and public safety programs, automotive repair, and animal science and horticulture programs with an outdoor paddock, paved workspace, and greenhouse.

Arts spaces include visual art, band, chorus, dance, drama, and technical theater. The 800-seat auditorium is fully outfitted to support performing arts programming, providing large, flexible wing space, a catwalk, performance lighting, video projection, and AV capabilities. The performing arts learning spaces are direct across the corridor from the stage, providing flexible and direct access from the learning spaces to the performance space and to the loading dock.

The main gymnasium seats 1400 and is outfitted for basketball and volleyball tournaments. This is supplemented with an auxiliary gymnasium, locker rooms, weight and cardio training room, and wrestling space. In addition to the athletics facilities within the main building, the site also provides an athletics complex, including a 2500-seat stadium with football, track, and field facilities, a competition field for soccer, field hockey, and lacrosse, a multipurpose field, baseball, and softball fields, locker facilities, and tennis courts.

The new high school will break ground summer of 2021 and will welcome students for the fall semester of 2023.

Construction of the new NHS is set to begin in June 2021. As the project progresses, important information regarding construction and the site will be shared here.

View images from the Groundbreaking Ceremony.

Spring 2022 Update

  • Project is on schedule for substantial completion in May 2023.
  • Challenges like those seen throughout the construction industry have been present on this project as well…. price escalations, long delivery times for materials, crowded marketplace among subcontractors who are at or past their capacity.
  • Architect estimates the project is 40% complete.
  • Planning is well-underway for furnishings and technology equipment.
  • Road improvements at Roxboro recently bid, and work anticipated to start this summer.

Do you have questions or feedback for DPS leadership and the BOE?

 

Consultation has concluded
You need to be signed in to comment in this Guest Book. Click here to Sign In or Register to get involved

"Ken Browning Stadium" is extremely appropriate. Thanks for allowing input re. naming of the NHS football stadium.
I graduated with Ken in 1964 from NHS, and I have been associated with him ever since. There is abundant reason to name the stadium after Ken, based on his coaching record. There is, however, even more reason to name the stadium after him based on his substantial influence on youth over the years. He has been exemplary in encouraging academic as well as athletic accomplishment. ta
An investigation of Ken's background will reveal the large number of young men that he has mentored and inspired. He valued all students of every race and background, with a special interest in those who were disadvantaged. Please send a message to the community that character is valued just as is athletic leadership in our school system.
Roy Averette

RoyAverette 8 months ago
Cancel x

Are there plans yet for the old property? When will they be made public? Will there be public hearings?

Neighbor27712 9 months ago
Cancel x

Question: What does this construction and the new Northern High School at this location mean for the residents on Monk and Ryan Street? Now and in the future?

scooper almost 3 years ago
Cancel x

Question: What does this construction and the new Northern High School at this location mean for the residents on Monk and Ryan Street? Now and in the fture?

Mccaskill almost 3 years ago
Cancel x