The first day of school is just a month away, but work on Catoosa County’s new $41.6 million Heritage High School is right on schedule.

In fact, it’s a month ahead of schedule, principal Ronnie Bradford said last week.

“We’ll be ready,” he said about the Aug. 7 first day of classes at the high school.

“It’s been an incredible amount of work. It’s 100 times more complicated than opening a middle school,” said the principal, who previously led the county’s Heritage Middle School start-up effort.

The sprawling, state-of-the art high school is part of approximately $200 million in current and future school construction in Northwest Georgia, one of the most rapidly growing areas in the state.

School districts in Catoosa, Dade, Walker, Whitfield and Murray counties are in the midst of building new schools to accommodate growth, replace outdated buildings and make substantial renovations to others. Some districts are in the beginning stages of expanding their school building programs.

“We are heading forward and moving dirt on the new elementary school on Cedar Ridge Road,” Whitfield County school board vice chairman Chuck Oliver said recently. “We are making progress on (the building program).”

Work on the new high school to be located on a 95-acre site off Crow Road is still in the design phase, Whitfield schools spokesman Eric Beavers said. The site is located near the intersection of Georgia 2 between Varnell and Beaverdale elementary schools. The budget for both schools is $69.5 million.

“Anyone who doesn’t think we need to build a new high school should drive by Northwest High School,” Mr. Oliver said. “We have about 19 portable (classrooms) at the school for about 500 students.”

Veteran educator Wanda Janeway said she is thrilled with the opportunity to open the new Rossville Middle School. The old building was formerly Rossville High School on Bull Dog Drive off Fleagel Street.

“I’ve been in that building for 19 years,” Mrs. Janeway said amidst last minute packing. Most all Walker County schools and the central office was closed the week of July 4, but she and some of her staff were getting ready for the move. Teachers report to school on July 28 and students come Aug. 1.

The new three-story, 94,000-square-foot building is part of $26 million budgeted for the Rossville school and classroom additions at Naomi and Rock Spring elementary schools. The budget also included athletic facilities at the three middle schools.

Population growth has spurred school construction in Murray County, Murray County Board of Education member Pat Hooker said.

“We are getting ready to break ground on a new high school on Mount Caramel Road, off Highway 225 North,” Ms. Hooker said. “It will serve between 1,500 to 1,700 students. We started out talking about a cost of $36 million to $38 million but it’s going to be more around $40 million.”

The district has one high school, and it’s overcrowded, Ms. Hooker said. Some of the overflow is housed in the former Bagley Middle School where a freshman academy meets, she said. The new Bagley Middle School opened around four years ago.

“We used to be thought of as a small system,” she said, “but, we are coming up on 8,000 students.”

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