|Photo by Derek Redd| Construction crews continue work on the new Sand Hill Elementary School.

The new Sand Hill Elementary School building is on schedule within its “tight timeline” to be ready for students to begin learning in the $13.5 million facility next fall, according to Marshall County Schools Facilities Director Michael Price.

Thursday morning saw the installation of the school’s superstructure, the steel body on which the roof will be built. Price said four hours of the installation were dedicated to getting the crane on site, which had to navigate up Stone Church Road and then operate in a limited construction space.

“Anyone who’s been on Stone Church Road knows it’s big and winding, and cranes are tough to navigate as they could get caught on the turns,” Price said. “We were able to get the crane up there, and the steel was erected before school buses showed up, so it was a productive morning.”

The new Sand Hill building will contain preschool through fifth-grade classrooms, a multi-purpose cafeteria/gym, a media center/library and an administration area.

Marshall County Schools Superintendent Shelby Haines added the new building would also have an updated security system, including an alarm system and a man-trap entrance.

While the new school is under construction, Sand Hill students have been learning in a modular temporary classroom facility on the property. The facility contains eight classrooms, multiple-stall student bathrooms and teacher bathrooms. Students are bused to the Dallas Community Center to use its cafeteria during lunch as the modular does not contain food facilities.

Students have been in the modular classroom since the start of the 2023 school year, as the former building was demolished in Sept. 2023. Haines and Price want students and faculty in the new school building by the start of next school year.

Though their deadline of mid-August 2025 is still many months away, Price stressed the project must stay on schedule for a smooth transition from the modular to the new facility.

This schedule includes removing the modular from the site at the end of this school year, as the new school’s septic sewage plant and playground will be located where the modular sits.

The septic sewage plant will be housed largely underground, and Price stressed that it and the playground will “not interact with each other.”

Price said the modular would need to be removed approximately two and a half to three months before the first day of the next school year so that the contractor has adequate time to build the sewage plant infrastructure.

“As soon as we get close to our end of the school session, we’re going to be hitting the ground, pulling those trailers out of there,” Price said. “They’re modular, so we have eight trailers to remove.”

The sewage plant must be completed before school begins, as the facility is required for the building to operate. Price said the playground may still be under construction after the school opens.

“I’m not sweating the playground that much because we have all the parts and materials ready for that,” Price said. “When we say the school’s open, that doesn’t mean the project’s going to be finished since we’ll still have some parking lot cleanup and some signage installation that won’t affect the safety of students.”

Due to the “tight space” of the Sand Hill construction site, Price said the modular will be removed in sections that will have to “meander their way back down Stone Church.”

“It’s not like some of my other projects where I have some room to execute what’s needed to be done,” Price said. “Having that transition between the modular and the new school ready by mid-August is the key to getting this done, which we knew was the challenge heading into this.”

Price commended the project’s contractor, Waller Corporation, for doing a “great job” while staying on schedule. He added the project was currently two weeks ahead in its timeline due to the dry summer, which allowed construction to continue without weather delays.

“This has been one of the most challenging projects I’ve worked on yet, but it’s been going very well,” Price said. “Everyone has been coordinating well, from the contractor to Sand Hill staff.”

Price also thanked the Bryant family, who leased their property surrounding the school to provide additional parking for construction workers and a layout space for construction equipment.

“The whole community has been very supportive of the project,” Price added. “They’re excited to have a school. If you think of a community school, Sand Hill is the epitome of that.”

Price and Haines took Marshall County School Board members on a tour of the facility Thursday so they could learn about the project’s tight timeline and the progress made on the building.

The current state of the inside of the building is “a bunch of concrete,” according to Price, as construction workers are currently working on roof installation. Once the building is “weather-tight,” Price said work will begin on its interior.

Though there is much work to be done on the building, Price and Haines look forward to seeing students’ faces when they enter the new facility on the first day of school next year.

“I was there on the first day of school in 2023 when the Sand Hill kids first walked into the current modular, and they were like, ‘Wow, this is amazing,” Haines said. “All I could think was, ‘Wow, this is a modular, and these kids are so excited. When they finally get to see their new school, they’re going to be just floored.'”

Price was the most excited for students and faculty to view the new Learning Stair Area, which will serve as a small auditorium where students can see an “incredible view” through a glass curtain wall.

“That area gives them another more laid-back atmosphere to learn in,” Price said. “I think it’s going to be one of the most popular parts of the school.”