Athens Bible School President Randall “Randy” Adams has a unique perspective on the school’s transition from its old campus on Hoffman Street to its new home on U.S. 31 North.

Adams attended Athens Bible School from first through fourth grades. His fourth-grade year turned out to be fateful.

“There was a little girl who came here in the fourth grade from Arkansas,” Adams said, adding the girl’s name was Jill Osborne. “We had the one year together, and later, we got married.”

Adams, a Pulaski, Tennessee, native, chose a career path of education and spent years as a teacher at Limestone County Schools, Decatur City Schools, Athens State University and Calhoun Community College. Adams came to ABS eight years ago.

He described leaving the Hoffman Street campus as “bittersweet” Tuesday as he prepared to cut the ribbon on the school’s new 42-acre Persell Campus, located across from the new Athens High School. Thursday will be the first day of school at the new campus.

“We gathered this morning to walk down the hallways, let those memories flood and shed a few tears,” he said. “So many people sacrificed to make this happen. We’ve been around 76 years, and now we’ve got this glorious new campus and we’re looking forward to 76 more years.”

When asked what else he would miss about the old campus, Adams said it would be the kids in the halls and the smiling faces. He added the school is greater than just bricks and mortar, however — it’s the faculty and staff inside the building.

“We have an opportunity to teach them not just about the secular things, but we also try to give them a pathway to heaven,” he said.

The road to the new school has been a long one. The Athens Bible School board of directors purchased the property for the new campus 20 years ago. Plans to build a new school were part of a plan developed in 2002 dubbed “Vision 2020.”

“Our (Hoffman Street) facility was getting old and decrepit,” he said. “We’re going from 11 acres to 42 acres and have more room to expand and put all the ballfields in one place. Plus, it’s more organized and air-conditioned. Our old gym was not air-conditioned.”

Because the $11-million campus has more room, the school could also double its student capacity if necessary. Adams said enrollment at the end of the 2018-2019 school year was 229 students. He won’t know how much enrollment increased until Thursday, but he believes it will be in the 240s.

In addition to more space, there are also added state-of-the-art features, including SmartBoard capability in each classroom. The chapel where students meet each morning seats 428 — an increase of more than 100 seats — with a stage, sloped floor and the opportunity to be rented for events if needed.

The school has 52 teachers and support staff, about half of which are part-time employees.

“Ministers come from our local congregations to teach Bible classes for one hour,” he said. “This (school) is a labor of love. When we moved, we moved ourselves and our parents and kids helped.”

Visit http://www.athensbibleschool.org for more information about ABS.