The groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the new gymnasium and performing arts building took place on Rosenthal Field yesterday during extra help, having been moved from its original date of April 22.

“That was the date that the board of trustees decided on,” Managing Director of Advancement Melinda Gonzales said. “It turned out to be a good thing because the original date we had the bad weather. The work will start a few days later, and it’s a ceremony to mark the historic moment of the work beginning on these new buildings.”

Upper school students, who were required to attend, wore their class shirts to the event. Other attendees included the board of trustees, the board of fellows, major benefactors and construction personnel.

“I’m a very small part of a very big team of people who put together the plans for the buildings,” Executive Director of Advancement Joe Rosenthal said. “Our entire advancement team is very involved in building a sense of community and the strategic planning of the needs and programs of the school based upon what students’ needs are and what parents’ feedback is. It’s a great way for us to be involved in this historic event.”

The new buildings are projected to be completed in late 2017 and early 2018. They will allow students who previously had to travel to the middle school or lower school campus for extracurricular activities to participate in those activities at the upper school.

“We’ll finish [the ceremony] with the athletic director and the performing arts director taking the shovel and turning the dirt, because they direct the programs that will most significantly benefit from this project,” Rosenthal said. “By having these facilities, it’s the catalyst for us then to be able to move onto property that we own, solidifying our presence and our standard of excellence for the next 125 years. We’re not able to put on the kind of performances that we would otherwise be able to put on now that these facilities are going to be added, so our students are going to be able to reach their full potential through these facilities.”

Due to construction on the field and the parking lot, students will lose their on-campus parking privileges starting next Monday and are instead advised to park at the middle school campus. A shuttle and van service will be available to transport students from the middle school to the upper school.

This piece was originally published in the pages of the Winged Post on May 4, 2016.