Doesn’t West Salem High School just seem like it is getting bigger and bigger? With it being the only high school in West Salem and a booming population, expansion is necessary. As construction continues into the winter, West Salem Titans say there are pros and cons to the addition.
The new construction at West will be very helpful for students because it will give us much more space to eat at lunch. In October, there was very little room to eat lunch, and with an added cafeteria, we students have the needed space to eat, hang out, and socialize. Another opportunity that this construction will bring is it will give our drama students more room for practice. This includes dress rehearsals, plays, and performances. There is so much positivity that comes out of this new expansion of our school.
However, there also are some cons to having the new add-on. One question on the minds of students is, will this make the school very confusing and big? The answer is yes. To those new to WSHS, our campus is large and daunting. It can be really hard in the first few weeks to find your way around and to get to all of your different classes on time.
Opened in 2000, West was designed to to serve 1,750 students in total. But this academic year, student numbers have topped 2,100.
Questions that are on Titan’s minds include:
What are they adding that will be helpful? The district says this construction project will allow many more students to get more involved with classes that they want to attend.
When did the construction start? The construction started in the summer of 2021 so it could be done before school started the next coming school year of 2022. However, because of delays and supply chain issues, construction is taking longer than originally planned.
When will the construction end? This is a question that is really hard to answer. It was scheduled to be completed in the early fall of 2022. However, because of the sheer size of the project, construction will continue into 2023.
