The board previously approved a reallocation of $100,000 from bond savings to cover expenses for the process during a July 21 meeting.
Now, the district has established a timeline for developing a vision, a layout of building organization and desired environment for students and staff.
LHS Principal Chris Simpson said his top priority for the project is student safety and security in addition to equitable access for school programming.
Simpson added it will be important to retain campus history, because LHS opened in 1984 as the district’s original high school.
“The next biggest thing is the flow,” he said. “We’ve had challenges with parking. We’ve got challenges with how kids navigate the building. A lot of our areas need a face lift.”
To design the plan, district staff and officials are working with Pfluger Architects, a firm that has helped develop plans for LISD's elementary schools.
Jessica Molter, managing principal at Pfluger Architects, said it will take about six months to complete the process.
By the end of January, the group will define the school's goals, compare LHS programming with that of newer schools to look for disparities, and identify a stakeholder group from which to solicit feedback, she said.
In February, Pfluger Architects will meet with the stakeholder group, which will consist of committee members, students, campus administrators, department heads, parents, community members and district administration.
“We really want a really broad spectrum of people, because the more information we get, the better this is ultimately going to be,” Molter said. “The first meeting we’ll have together, we’re really going to establish the guiding principles and the vision of the campus.”
A second meeting to explore ideas and options for projects on campus will be held in March. In April, Pfluger Architects will confirm the direction of the master plan and in May will deliver the plan, according to district information.
“It’s a little bit different from a ground-up building, where it’s not just going to be one plan, but it’s going to probably have to be phased over time,” Molter said. “So we’ll be looking at how that will happen on an active campus—maintaining that safety and security, and student access throughout that process.”
