FAQs Regarding Two High Schools
January 2024:
Construction is complete. HCPS has possession of the building and furniture deliveries will soon begin.
October 2023:
New Rocktown High Logo Unveiled, Other New School Updates
Rocktown High School On Its Way To Finalization
September 2023
Construction photos
May 2023: Light Dawns On Rocktown High School Hallways (DNR article)
March 2023:
The mascot for Rocktown High School will be the raptor. Go, Rocktown Raptors!
December 2022:
Construction continues on the new Rocktown High School which is scheduled to welcome students in August of 2024. Nielsen Construction is currently preparing for colder temperatures by closing in the building with temporary windows and doors. This will allow the continuation of work inside the building.
The exterior of the building, as well as the building's campus, has seen some major changes within the last few months with the installation of both the softball and baseball fields. The astroturf field will receive astroturf in the Spring of 2023. East Kaylor Park Drive and the school's bus loop have the first coat of asphalt as well as the installation of curb and gutter.
The interior of the building is changing rapidly. Within the last month the installation of drywall has begun, as well as the installation of computer cabling. The first coat of paint is on many areas of the building and the exterior windows are being installed.
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June 2022: Progress Continues On New Rocktown High School Construction (DNR article)
May 2022: On May 3, 2022, the Harrisonburg City School Board voted to name the new high school Rocktown High School. On May 6, the community was invited to a Topping Out ceremony as the last beam was placed on the structure.
March 2022 update: Construction is moving along quickly at the new Harrisonburg High School construction site. The site work around the building was completed over a month ago and the building is beginning to take shape. The most noticeable change to the site is the construction of the main gymnasium, auxiliary gymnasium, the Flex Hall and the Fine Arts area. The exterior walls are in place and the interior walls are being constructed now. Steel is being erected in the front academic portion of the building as well in the kitchen area and southern academic section. The geothermal wells are complete under the main parking lot. East Kaylor Drive (the road leading to the building) is being graded and readied for the first coat of asphalt to be installed later this spring. The athletic fields are to grade and the team buildings, as well as the concession stands, are under construction. In April, Nielsen Builders as well as Harrisonburg City Public Schools will hold a “Topping Out” Ceremony where members of the community will be able to sign the final steel beam prior to its installation. Keep an eye out for the announcement and date.
October 2021 update: Construction on the new high school resumed on July 14, 2021 after being suspended for over a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, the majority of the construction has been in the site preparation phase. This includes grading the site, removing rock and preparing the "pad" for the concrete. Nielsen Builders is also pouring concrete footers and beginning to erect the walls of the building in and around the Flex Hall area. Electrical conduit as well as water piping is being installed in anticipation of the floors being poured with concrete.
In May 2019, Harrisonburg City Public Schools initiated a two phase process of Programming and Design for our new high school, with a targeted opening of Fall 2022. This collaborative process includes input from administrators, teachers, staff members, parents, students, and members of the Harrisonburg community. In August 2019, preliminary design drawings were provided by the architect and builders. The Design Committee met to discuss those drawings, and submitted their recommendation to the School Board.
At its October 1 meeting, the School Board voted to accept the Design Committee's recommendation as amended with the removal of the student canopy.
On December 10, 2019, City Council approved construction of the new high school design as recommended by the Design Committee. On January 21, 2020, a groundbreaking ceremony was held.
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View a virtual tour of what the grounds of the new high school will look like, produced by Valley Engineering.
There are four pillars of the new high school project:
Pillar 1: Representation
HCPS staff and the School Board intentionally and systematically gathered a vast amount of input from the community - including parents, students, teachers, school leaders, and community members. It has been our goal to gather information from as many stakeholders as possible and to attempt to have that input represent the demographics of Harrisonburg.
Designing a school takes organization, input, and strategic planning. To guide this process, a number of committees have been established by the Superintendent, each serving a distinct function and providing specific information to the design team. Committee members have been carefully selected to represent the diversity and varied needs and interests of the Harrisonburg community.
Members of the Programming Committee were chosen because of specific expertise each can offer. Each Programming Committee meeting focuses on a particular area of the building and provides valuable input regarding its design. The Programming Committee included over 20 community members, who were invited to attend all programming meetings. These community members provided valuable input throughout the process.
The student perspective is, of course, extremely valuable in the design of a new school. The Student Committee consists of current high school and middle school students, representing each grade level (6-12).
A general public input meeting was also held during evening hours to give members of the community who were not selected to serve on the Programming Committee an opportunity to share ideas about programming and design.
Suggestions from anyone interested in contributing were also received online.
The Design Committee is the group that makes the final design decisions regarding the construction of the building. Committee members represent a cross section of our school community, including a variety of disciplines. The Design Committee has been meeting regularly since early June.
To date, more than 15 meetings have been held, providing critical input on the programming and design of the new high school. These meetings have brought together a diverse group of stakeholders who have provided their own unique vision for the new high school.
Pillar 2: Individual School Identities
The community’s preference was loud and clear. Each school will have its own special character and identify, including athletic teams. The Design Committee has heeded the input of the Programming Committee and other stakeholders by designing two independent home campuses in a manner that is both efficient and equitable. District boundaries will be drawn, and each student will have an assigned school.
Pillar 3: Efficient Use of Resources
The creation of a new school is an exciting opportunity to assess the needs of our students and design a school, literally from the ground up, to best meet those needs. At the same time, we are also considering the assets of the existing high school and how the outcomes of this design process can improve educational opportunities for ALL students in Harrisonburg City.
To remain within budget and use resources efficiently, the Design Committee has decided to emphasize fine arts on the current campus, where there is already a large, well-equipped auditorium, and emphasize STEM on the new campus, where the required infrastructure can be built in. This plan saves resources by not requiring HCPS to retrofit the current school for state-of-the-art STEM education and by not requiring HCPS to build an expensive auditorium on the new campus.
Pillar 4: Equal Opportunity for All Students
To ensure equity and equal opportunity for all HCPS students to take advantage of all HCPS programs and offerings, the Design Committee supports a master schedule collaboratively developed between the existing high school and the new high school. Students would be assigned a home school but would be able to take advantage of the facilities and academic programs at both schools. Transportation between the high school campuses would be provided.
Adding to the new school’s flexibility and functionality is the Design Committee’s commitment to developing a virtual learning system so that students and faculty can share teaching and learning from one campus to the other.
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Please visit this page to view a list of historical documents regarding the recommendation to build a new high school. To view the new high school concept plan, please send a request to Kelly Lineweaver.