Ahead Of Schedule, Third Gym Ready For Students
New Gym Was Expected To Open After School Year
Construction continued on the new gym at Staley High School Dec. 10.
December 18, 2021
What could the school do with more space? A brand new basketball court and two batting cages worth of space, to be exact. With the new addition of a third gym, this is the elephant in the room.
In an announcement right before winter break, students found out they will get to use that gym sooner than anticipated.
“There are periods in the day where we get doubled up on classes,” said physical education teacher David Wilson. “So having that third gym is going to be great. That way everybody has some space.”
Not only is the gym going to allow teachers more space for their classes, but it will also be beneficial to the sports programs.
“We finally have a place to do speed and agility instead of the hallways,” Wilson, who is also the head baseball coach, said. “We’re always trying to find space throughout the school, so it’s going to open it up a lot for athletic teams and after-school programs.”
Since Aug. 18, 2008, the opening of the school, coaches and players have made do with less-than-ideal conditions. Off-season workouts and practices were sidelined due to scheduling conflicts and in-season sports.
“Working out around basketball’s schedule in the offseason was tough,” junior student athlete Tyler Leonard said. “We would either go early in the morning or late afternoon.”
Batting cages and a basketball court won’t ever work out next to each other, right? Wrong. The third gym will have a dropdown divider that is retractable both up and down. Having a divider will allow for the space to be used to the maximum efficiency, allowing basketball practices to continue as if the other side of the gym isn’t even occupied.
“Being able to work when the colder parts of winter are in full effect is something all players and coaches have wanted, even more so without the worry of running sprints through the cafeteria,” said junior student athlete Cole Robertson.
Although some may believe the new gym will only benefit spring sports, it will actually allow sports like football, tennis and softball a place to practice speed and agility.
“Last year we would run from lifting inside all the way to the football field for speed and agility,” Robertson said. “Now with this new gym, we will have everything we need in one place.”
Coaches and athletes had been waiting with anticipation since midsummer 2020 for the newest addition to the school to be fully constructed. Construction was expected to be complete between the end of the school year and mid-summer, but principal Larry Smith, Ed.D., announced right before students left for winter break that the gym would be open when students returned. It will showcase exactly what Staley High School can do with that much space.
