The Perry County School District 32 Board of Education and administrators received a tour Monday evening of the temporary classrooms that will house classes for Perryville High School students for the 2025-26 school year.
District 32 construction and utility partners have been working long hours, seven days a week since early July to prepare facilities for the first day of classes on Wednesday, Aug. 20. These classrooms will provide a temporary home for students and staff while long-term planning and repairs are completed at PHS, which suffered significant damage during the March 14 tornado.
“Getting these facilities ready for students in such a short period of time has been no small task. It has required a great deal of cooperation and coordination between the district, our construction partners and vendors, and the City of Perryville,” said PCSD32 Board of Education President Dominic Blythe. “We are all pushing as hard as we can towards the goal of being ready for students on August 20. On behalf of the district, I’d like to thank everyone involved for their work in making this happen for our students.”
There is a total of five temporary facilities on the PCSD32 campus that will host classes for PHS in the fall — three on the bus parking lot by Pirate Stadium and two on the parking lot across from PHS. All of these facilities are outfitted with utilities, restrooms, and HVAC systems. Students will also attend classes at the Old Senior High School, the old industrial arts building, and spaces in the PHS annex that face Gator Bowl Drive.
The three classrooms on the bus lot include a band room, a choir room, and a fitness center with a weight room and locker rooms. These facilities were built first and are almost ready for move-in.
The structures on the PHS parking lot will serve as the main central hub of PHS for 2025-26. The largest learning annex will contain 22 classrooms and administrative offices, while a smaller connected facility will host an additional five classrooms and administrative space. The main structures for these facilities are in place, and crews are working on installing utilities and finishing details.
“Our students and staff showed great resilience in the spring, pulling together and making space for our high school students to finish out the year,” said Superintendent Dr. Fara Jones. “Our top priority since then has been making sure our high school students could be back together in their own space. We hope these temporary classrooms will provide a more typical high school experience until we are able to rebuild.”
Tornado recovery progress across campus
In addition to constructing the temporary classrooms, crews have completed several projects across campus throughout the summer to recover from tornado damage in preparation for the start of classes. Below are some highlights.
■ The damaged turf at Pirate Stadium has been removed, and the new turf grass has been installed. It will be ready for the first home game on Sept. 5.
■ Crews are in the process of removing the damaged turf from Minuteman Field.
■ Roof, ceiling, and window repairs have been completed at Old Senior High.
■ Roof, ceiling, and soffit repairs have been completed at the Perryville Area Career & Technology Center.
■ Roof and HVAC repairs have been completed at Perryville Primary Center.
■ Roof and HVAC repairs/ replacement are nearing completion at Perryville Elementary, and a new mural was painted on the side of the building.
The first day of school in the Perry County School District 32 is Wednesday, Aug. 20.
