Brookland, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – Construction on Brookland Public School’s (BPS) new intermediate school is moving forward, with its opening date looking to be on track.
An update regarding the school was posted on Oct. 18 on Haag Brown’s Facebook page, saying the site was “starting to take shape.”
The 83,000 square-foot school, which board members and students broke ground on in March, is located at Highway 49-B and County Road 948. Nabholz Construction is managing the project.
Haag Brown’s post said that currently, infrastructure for the building is in place, the drives and parking lots have been formed, and a portion of the foundation has been poured.
BPS superintendent George Kennedy told JRN that as of Oct. 20, steel for the walls has started going up, adding that the process should take a few weeks. So far, there have not been any issues regarding the building’s construction, minus a few more trees having to be removed, he said.
One of the factors behind the project, Kennedy said, was capacity. He explained that some of the district’s buildings have been maxed out, and it has been working on ways to tackle that issue, specifically by splitting grade levels.
“Right now, the elementary [school] is full and overflowing, [the] middle school has little room, but [the] junior high and high school are also pretty full. So, we can kind of move people around and move kids around, and that creates a space that we need to continue to grow and take care of our kids,” he said.
The new facility will serve 750 third and fourth graders and feature several additions, including special education spaces, a media center, a cafeteria with a full-service kitchen, and a multi-use gym that doubles as a storm shelter.
Of the additions being made, Kennedy said one he is very excited about is the playground, as it will have turf on it, making it possible for students to get outside and play even when it is raining.
“For our kids, it’s important to get that energy out, and I think that playing for especially that grade level of kids is very important to their education,” he said.
Another thing Kennedy is excited about is how traffic will be handled, an issue that the school district and city leaders have been working to alleviate.
He explained that with the car rider line, cars will come in one side, and there will be a covered walkway to protect students from the weather. Those who ride the buses will also get out in the same area, with the buses coming around from the back of the school.
“The cars and the buses will never have to cross that same path, at least when the students are getting in and out of the vehicle,” he said.
The new building won’t be the only thing on the 103-acre property. Kennedy explained that the district had already moved its agriculture program to the same property, with the animals being housed in a barn there. Future plans also include a building for the district’s transportation department to house its buses, freeing up parking at Brookland High School.
Kennedy said overall, the project will cost $30 million, emphasizing that residents will not have to pay anything to make it happen. The district took out second lien bonds to pay for it, he said.
The new intermediate school is expected to be completed and operational by July 2026, a month before the beginning of the 2026-2027 school year.