Jonesboro, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – Construction is ahead of schedule at Valley View High School, where a new building is expected to alleviate space concerns as the student population continues to grow.
In late spring, the Valley View School District broke ground on a 22,149 square-foot building. Plans for the project started a year and a half ago, and the project was approved in Jan. 2025.
Superintendent Roland Popejoy said 8,000 square feet of the building will be dedicated to storm shelter space, while the rest will be dedicated to eight more classrooms, a new choir room, and a second agriculture shop.
He explained they are working to meet the needs of their growing student population, which has grown in the 13 years since the current high school building began operations.
“We have three different programs to study in agriculture, and so [we are] ensuring they are able to have the space needed to do all the different projects they do as part of their learning in those courses,” he said.
With the limited space the school has, some classes, especially its agriculture classes, have had to double up, having two classes with two instructors at the same time, according to Popejoy. He added that it becomes difficult and risky for multiple projects to be going on at the same time, with the number of students in a single classroom.
“We want to ensure that, not only do we have the space, but also that all of those projects are able to be done safely, and that is done with proper scaling of the equipment,” Popejoy said. “By having the two full shops, it allows us to ensure safety, as well as learning for all the kids.”
One feature that Popejoy is excited about is the storm shelter, which is the school’s first dedicated storm shelter, complete with six full classrooms. He hopes it will not only serve their students but also the community.
On Nov. 13, the school district posted on its Facebook page an aerial shot of the facility, saying “big things continue to happen.”
As of now, construction is going along smoothly, with Popejoy noting they are ahead of schedule and have had no significant challenges delaying the project, minus weather pausing progress for a limited time.
Currently, work is being done on the walls and utilities. Plans for the structural steel for the building will begin next week. Popejoy said, if things go as planned, the new facility will be completed and operational by fall 2026.