The school district is continuing its planning for the high school’s $53.5 million expansion, with the intention of breaking ground in April.
Danbury High School is home to 3,000 students and a staff of 200. The campus has undergone many expansions since the school opened in 1964, but this project is by far the largest.
The district anticipates more than 500 additional students to enter the high school over the next few years. Plans include a 26-classroom addition to the back of the D-Wing that would house the Freshman Academy, which currently is situated on D4.
Academy Principal Dan Donovan told the News Times in June that the expansion will allow the school to do so much more.
“It is going to be new and exciting,” Donovan told the newspaper. “The extra space will give us the ability to increase our instructional practice and it will help freshmen in their transition.”
Other highlights of the project, which was approved by Danbury voters in a June referendum, include a free-standing theater, an all-purpose room, a new auto garage, a smart roof and a glass-faced entrance.
The architects have been hired and construction is set to begin in the spring, Principal Gary Bocaccio said.
Construction, he added, is expected to take 16 to 18 months. This fall it has been common to see workers conducting land surveys around campus.
Of course there will be inconveniences and disruptions, like at any construction site, but Bocaccio said he doesn’t anticipate the work interrupting learning.
Students, even though many of them will have graduated by the time the project is completed, say the expansion is greatly needed.
The most common complaint is trying to get around the school from class to class during pass. Because of the crowds, which many liken to trying to get around the NYC subway, many students have to rush to get to class on time. As the size of the student body has grown, some students are finding the 5 minutes for pass just isn’t enough.
“Throughout my career we’ve undergone several expansions,” Bocaccio said. “The key is to not disrupt the education of our students, and make this the most comfortable learning environment as possible.