MUSKEGON, Mich. — After two years of construction, Charles Hackley Middle School is almost finished. It is the first new building for Muskegon Public Schools since Dwight Eisenhower was president.
Construction workers were completing some of the final touches to the new middle school when FOX 17 stopped by Friday for a tour.
The district's sixth, seventh and eighth grade students will move into the $35 million school this fall.
"This is going to be something. It's been 67 years since we debuted a brand new building, and this is something that is going to be here probably for the next 50 or 60 years," Muskegon Public Schools Superintendent Matthew Cortez said.
The new middle school is made up of 45 academic classrooms, all with tiered seating.
"It's designed so as they get farther in the room, we lift up the chairs. A lot of kids like to stand and learn," Cortez explained.
Plus, the science labs have white board cabinet doors for students to take notes on during experiments.
"The old way was you would have a science teaching room, and then you would have a science lab," Cortez said. "What we did is we worked with our science teachers and we thought with our science curriculum, so we combine the two to encourage more lab work."
And don't forget about security — every door has a keyless entry at Charles Hackley Middle School, requiring an ID badge for access. Other security highlights include hall doors that can close automatically and security cameras police can access remotely.
"In case of emergency, our dispatch can tie right into our system and actually use our camera system to kind of pinpoint where they need rescue help," Cortez added.
Other features include lots of natural light in every room, a new gym and a new track and athletic field behind the school.
Cortez says he loves seeing the faces of district students and families as they see inside for the first time.
"I have brought three groups of students through the building already, and to watch their different expressions — one student looks at me and said, 'It smells expensive,' and I thought that was tremendous," he added.
If you want to get your inside look of Charles Hackley Middle School, the district is holding a ribbon cutting on Thursday, May 2 from 5- 7 p.m.
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