Although Saugus’ impressive new middle-high school currently sits empty of students thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, such a setback hasn’t dimmed enthusiasm for the town’s five-year passion project, which was finally completed earlier this year.
During a building tour with local officials Friday, PMA Consultants Project Manager Kevin Nigro — whose construction company was hired in 2015 to work alongside Saugus’ School Building Committee — explained that nearly every aspect of the building, from its classrooms to its shared spaces to its furniture, was designed with flexibility and growth in mind in order to accommodate the district’s ever-changing needs.
“What does education look like in five years? Ten years? Fifteen years? We don’t know,” Nigro said. “These spaces can be revisioned, repurposed into whatever the pedagogy of education is at that time.
“You’ll see a lot of flexibility here.”
Construction crews first broke ground at the site in July 2018, and, two years later, the new building now towers over the old Saugus High School campus in an almost symbolic nod to what lies ahead. In addition to updated science and technology labs, the new school — built to house more than 1,400 students — includes a 12,000-square-foot gym, a 750-seat auditorium, outdoor classrooms, and student walkways and gardens, among numerous other amenities.
Last November, School Board member John Hatch called the new facilities “amazing,” adding that he felt the School Building Committee had done an excellent job planning for the new space.
“They’ve made the school into a point of pride, not just for the town, but for the state,” he said. “There’s not going to be a single old thing. Everything will be turnkey.”
Here’s a close-up look at some of the building’s state-of-the-art highlights.
