New Champion_tech_wing_officially_open
Champion High School Principal Natalie Banke can’t contain her enthusiasm for sharing details about the school’s new 38,000-square foot P-Tech addition.
“I was really excited about the space and what the children will be able to do in this space,” Banke said, “and the actual ability to have their hands-on learning in this type in environment. It’s just beautiful.”
The Greater Boerne Chamber of Commerce brought its team to Champion April 1 for a ribbon-cutting ceremony, to help the district officially unveil the two-story tech wing, a project approved by Boerne voters in the 2022 bond election.
“The space is more than just a building. It’s a launch path for future leaders, engineers, entrepreneurs and innovators,” Banke said.
Banke and Champion were handed the keys and began moving into the academic wing on Jan. 11 of this year after an 18-month construction period. D.L. Bandy Constructors were general contractors for the job, with NextGen Architects handling the engineering and design phase of the project.
Construction started in June 2023 and wrapped up about three months ago.
“ The building is a hub for STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) education and its pathways. Students here have the opportunity to dive into engineering and engineering design and gaining hands-on experience with cybersecurity,” she said.
“We also offer computer science, dual credit computer maintenance, digital forensics — providing students with the technical skills needed for careers of tomorrow,” the principal added.
Boerne ISD Board Trustee Dallas Pipes shared some insight from his perspective as a board member.
“This building ended up being almost $200,000 under budget,” he said.
Pipes drew a comparison between the cost for the wing and the cost to build a new elementary school.
“To give you an idea of what that kind of looks like ... we have 313 occupancies in the first floor and upstairs, you have about 404, so that’s about 717,” Pipes said. “That’s about the same size as an elementary school. So, for that $18 million that we built this with, it would cost twice as much to educate that many kids in (a new) elementary school.”
Being fiscally responsible and conservative when designing and constructing the building reflects positively on the board and administration.
“This bond that we took out in 2022 is already 25% paid off,” Pipes said. “So there’s a 30-year bond we’re paying out in about a third of the time. That should be paid off in about 10 years.
“That’s a really good job of showing how fiscally responsible this school board is, but also the budget committee,” he said. “Without them, this wouldn’t be possible.”
Banke praised the students who now fill the wing’s classrooms, labs and hallways evvery day.
“ All of them work together to create and to build things that will just make our world a better place,” she said. “It’s really awesome that they can do that here at Champion and not have to go out to do that.”
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