BRYAN, Texas — Bryan ISD is looking to make some renovations to Stephen F Austin Middle School Annex. As the middle school Odyssey Academy continues to grow and after years of wear and tear to the building it is time for a few upgrades.
The school district is hoping voters will approve its $175,000,000 bond to make a few changes.
Three years ago, SFA Middle School opened its new facility doors. Now one of the only structures from its previous campus that remains is the Annex, which dates back to the 1970s.
The annex houses 12 classrooms at the middle school, which are mostly occupied by the Odyssey program. With the rest of the middle school being so new, administrators want Odyssey to also feel like their learning space is just as up to date as the rest of the school.
"Whenever you talk about the environment and how does that affect learning, it absolutely does," said Kimberly Giesenschlag, the principal at SFA Middle School.
If Bryan ISD's 2020 bond is passed by voters in November, some of those funds would go towards renovations to the annex and all of the facilities in there.
“It would make [students] feel that their facility in the annex is just as up to date SFA Middle School is currently," Giesenschlag said.
Students and teachers said some of the space, like the air conditioning units in classrooms, can be distracting. Teachers hope the renovations will cut the distractions and get their students to feel relaxed while learning.
“To restructure it and to update it is going to help all of our students and teachers get to that level of teaching this day in age has," said Parker Knutson, the seventh grade Odyssey teacher at SFA Middle School.
The annex renovations would update classrooms, add more restrooms, dressing rooms for the dance studio and more.
About $5,219,600 of the $175 million would go towards SFA Middle School. The funds would also include upgrades to the public address system, provide more storage for band and orchestra and priority facility repairs and upgrades.
If the bond is approved it would not increase the tax rate for Bryan ISD taxpayers.