The new Athens High School is set to open Jan. 23. At 285,000 square feet, the new building features two gymnasiums, an auditorium that seats 860 people, a courtyard with outdoor classrooms, specialized classrooms and a tornado safe room that can sustain winds as high as 256 miles per hour.

In one week, the new Athens High School campus will finally open its doors, Athens City Schools Superintendent Trey Holladay announced Monday.

Similar announcements have been made in the months leading up to this point. In fact, the school year started a few weeks later than other school districts. Unfortunately, weather and other factors got in the way, and the opening date was delayed until Jan. 23.

“We’re excited about it for our students,” Holladay said during a press conference. “This building was planned and designed with students in mind.”

The start date coincides with the start of the second semester for Athens City students. Holladay explained the changes to the calendar meant the first semester of the 2018-2019 school year wouldn’t end until Friday, with schools being out Monday for Martin Luther King Jr. Day and students out Tuesday for a teacher workday.

“That will allow them (teachers) to have classrooms prepared,” Holladay said. “We’ve already moved a lot of the furniture, accessories, curriculum pieces, books — anything they’ll need.”

The new building is 285,000 square feet and designed to house 1,250 students in grades 9–12. A freshmen center will allow ninth-grade students to be separated from higher grades for the majority of the day.

Other amenities in the $60-million school include:

• 72 classrooms and instructional areas;

• Activity/practice gymnasium;

• Competition gymnasium;

• “State of the art” science and engineering labs;

• Student art gallery and art classrooms;

• Career and technical labs/classrooms;

• Two-story library/media center;

• Large band room with soundproof practice booths;

• 850-seat auditorium;

• Multimedia instructional panels in all instructional spaces;

• Flexible classroom seating; and

• A 1-acre courtyard to serve as outdoor classroom spaces.

Holladay said the school is approved in all areas except the auditorium. An open house is scheduled for 5 to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 22, for AHS students and their parents or guardians.

An official ribbon cutting and public grand opening is scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday, March 31, pending completion of the auditorium.