New Sherman High School unveiled, welcomes students Monday

SHERMAN, Texas (KXII) - Hundreds of Sherman High school students can hardly wait for the holiday break to be over.

That’s because their new three-story, 500,000 square foot high school is now open and ready for learning.

“The word that comes to mind is surreal, just to think that two years ago this was all a plot of land,” Sherman Junior Ian Mahjoobi said.

The campus features a cafeteria that seats nearly 800 people, an upstairs library, café, media center and an athletic center fit for ESPN.

“I’m most excited for the sports center, because before if it rained, we weren’t practicing,” said Sherman sophomore Phoenix Jarnt.

School officials say the six year project wasn’t all smooth sailing.

“We’ve experienced challenges throughout the way, right when we started we had a drought,” said Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations Tyson Bennet. “Once we broke ground, it started to rain and it rained for days.”

The COVID-19 pandemic also created new challenges, unlike anyone has ever experienced.

“This is really an example of how we decided to work through the pandemic,” Sherman Mayor David Plyler said.

“We had to do online learning for a while, and it was obviously harder, not having that face to face connection with a teacher,” Mahjoobi said.

For some, it’s been an emotional experience.

“It’s really been a full circle moment,” said SISD communications director Kimberly Simpson. “To have been here in our 2018 groundbreaking, to be standing here inside the school in 2021 welcoming people in, it’s amazing,” Simpson said.

“Knowing that this has been the light at the end of the tunnel, it’s given us hope, something to look forward to. And to see them (students) walk through the door Monday morning,” Sherman High School principal Jenifer Politi said.

Students will begin classes Monday and construction will continue nightly for its official grand opening in March.

Copyright 2021 KXII. All rights reserved.