IRMO, S.C. — Change is in the air and in the near future for Irmo High School. Students and teachers will soon have the east wing of the building replaced.
Principal Karen Hampton said Irmo high school will have a new look thanks to a hefty $50M sum that's been budgeted by the Lexington-Richland 5 school board.
The new east wing will have a large extension of 96,000 square feet, providing 50-60 new classrooms. The existing portion of Irmo High School that's 50 years old will be demolished.
It's been part of the plan to refresh the school's infrastructure.
"Right now, we're looking back and dreaming forward of what we could potentially offer our student body," Hampton said. "Not only our current classes, but for future classes to come. Not just 10 years from now, but 20 years from now, how can we ensure that we are being competitive."
An important piece in all of this is your voice.
"It's very rare that we get the opportunity to build a school how the community would like to see it happen, maybe not in totality, but at least to have that input collectively I think will benefit the entire community," Hampton said.
The school is hosting meetings this week to go over what parents, students, alumni and Irmo residents want to see.
"Community members can come in and use the pieces and move them around. That's all a tactile opportunity. We'll have a math teacher who's going to help us visualize the space so we can look at square footage and make those connections," Hampton said.
Construction starts May 2023 and the school is hoping to complete everything by June of 2025.
If you can't attend the community meetings on Wednesday, you can fill out a survey here sharing what you'd like to see in the new wing.