Construction boom: Major school capital projects underway in archdiocese

Several schools throughout the Archdiocese of Baltimore have completed or are working on major construction projects for the 2021-22 school year. Here’s a look at some of them.

The John Carroll School

Bel Air’s Catholic high school continues to develop a series of projects involving academic spaces, public places and a baseball field. Most projects were originally part of a $7 million capital campaign, which is expected to be in place from 2020 to 2023, but have also become possible due to the generosity of donors.

John Carroll is in the process of renovating the Dresher Academic Wing, which contains science facilities, and the auditorium, which is used as a multipurpose space for productions and events. 

Some of the completed and fully utilized projects in 2021 include the Kutcher Innovation Center, which houses the STEAM program, learning commons, Sisters of St. Joseph College Center, Streett Family Courtyard, turf baseball field and the Brown Fitness Center.

“There’s really no endpoint of when we will stop investing in the school,” President Stephen A. DiBiagio said. “We have an ongoing need to evolve, improve and renovate in order to keep pace with the level of instruction and prepare our kids for college and beyond.”

St. John’s Catholic Prep

The co-ed Catholic high school in Buckeystown completed Warner Stadium, a turf athletic field project, Oct. 22. The stadium, which seats 400 people, has lighting for game nights, scoreboard, bleachers, press box and parking. Minor additions are planned for the future, such as expanding the parking lot.

William Knotek, head of the school, said the stadium was necessary because it allows student athletes to train and have home games at their campus instead of going to local parks and fields. 

Students are currently practicing on the field, and the stadium will be open for games and competition in February. A ribbon-cutting ceremony is expected in the spring.

The $2.8 million stadium project is the final part of an ongoing $5 million capital “Promises Campaign” to revitalize the school. The school used a $1.8 bank loan, and the rest of the funding for the stadium came from the capital campaign, which has raised close to $2 million.

Among the completed projects are the St. Teresa of Kolkata chapel, which seats 35 people, a music room, an expanded cafeteria, art room, the Crowley multipurpose room, a water and sewer project, teachers’ lounge and endowment to support student tuition.

Archbishop Curley High School

The all-boys Franciscan high school in Baltimore has been working on a new HVAC system since 2019 and is near its completion. 

The portions completed thus far include air conditioning in the gym and third floor, duct work on the second floor, electrical upgrade and roof top units, with a total cost of $3.1 million.

In the summer of 2022, Archbishop Curleyl will bring air conditioning to the first and second floors, as well as add the ductwork to the first floor. This will cost an additional $1.2 million.

These projects were part of a $7 million capital campaign, which began in 2018 and is expected to end in 2023. Part of the campaign was dedicated to financial assistance and the school’s annual fund. 

Principal Jeremy Joseph said the school was built in 1961 and noted renovations were needed for an “optimal learning environment in the 21st century.”

Loyola Blakefield

The all-boys’ Jesuit school in Towson opened a new innovative learning center, named St. Ignatius Hall, for the 2020-2021 academic school year. The building is the centerpiece of a capital campaign titled “Ignite: The Campaign for Loyola Blakefield,” which raised more than $32 million.

A name unveiling ceremony for the Jesuit institution’s newest acquisition took place May 20, commemorating the 500th anniversary of St. Ignatius at the battle of Pamplona, which led him to spiritual awakening and conversion. A blessing and dedication ceremony took place Aug. 21.

The 46,000-square-foot addition features learning commons, 10 classrooms, two science labs, an art studio, music room, engineering lab, and cyber science lab.

St. Frances Academy

The oldest Catholic high school in the Archdiocese of Baltimore closed a three-year capital campaign for facilities upgrades. “Ensuring Our Legacy Campaign” raised $1.5 million Nov. 11.

According to Melissa A. D’Adamo, associate head of school at St. Frances Academy, the historical building had not been renovated since the 1970s, when the school transitioned into a day school.

Facilities upgrades included a new elevator, new roof on the historical building and chapel building, fresh chapel painting, renovated classrooms and restrooms in the historic building, new flooring and carpet throughout, new hallways, exterior painting and refurbishing on the exterior of the chapel and remodeling to the Eager Street Entrance of the Community Center. 

Mount de Sales Academy

The all-girls’ Dominican high school in Catonsville culminated the third and final phase of its capital campaign “Anchored in Excellence, Charting our Future,” with an $11 million Center for Performing Arts and Student Life in 2021.

“It will be a center for our school activities and a place where we may come to know one another and give witness to our faith in Christ,” said Archbishop William E. Lori during the blessing ceremony Dec. 3.

The capital campaign includes projects completed in previous years. Among those are a convent, campus security, HVAC system, turf athletic field, Gate House renovation, B-Side fourth-floor renovation, chapel extension and a science research lab. A celebration for the campaign is scheduled for March 19, 2022.

St. Ursula School

This parish school in Parkville is currently installing a new heating, ventilation and air conditioning system in the whole three-story building. The building connects the original school, which was opened Sept. 9, 1940, and a newer building.

The construction began in September 2021 and is expected to be finished sometime in between the end of the 2021-2022 academic year and the beginning of the 2022-2023 academic year.

The HVAC is estimated to cost from $1.5 million to $2 million and is funded by the active school board and parents’ association.

Email Priscila González de Doran at pdoran@CatholicReview.org

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