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0816 AUGUST
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a
new
high school
experience in baton rouge connect / l o c a l p r o f i l e by joy holden baton rouge has never seen a school like the new lee magnet high school. ?e campus
itself looks like a film set of a community college. five large, modern buildings sprawl across the grounds and form the unique school: the two connected administrative buildings, the digital arts academy, the bioscience academy, and the engineering academy. an elevated walkway connects the two administrative buildings which house the administrative offices, the gym, the dining hall, a walking track, a workout room, art and music classes, and a black box theater that opens out into an amphitheater. quite a lot has changed in baton rouge from 1959 to 2016, and this new campus illustrates that. robert e. lee high school opened on lee drive in 1959 and was a well known school for 50 years. ?e original campus closed in 2009. ?e reopened school has been stationed at the valley park campus since 2012, but the students and teachers are getting sunlight beams through the massive windows onto the bright modern chairs and triangular desks that are configured in collaborative learning arrangements. this room is ready and waiting for august 10 when its new residents, the lee magnet high students, will take their seats. and the students will be ?amazed and blown away,? according to associate and site principal, sharon sims. an upgrade this fall, a $54.7 million upgrade in fact. all that remains of the original campus is a louisiana oak tree and a canal for rainwater. ?what sets our school apart is that we have more collaboration and technology. we have created a family culture where we all can collaborate and grow together,? sharon sims declares, beaming with pride. she and principal nannette mccann have spent the last two years dedicating themselves to this project and the transition from valley park to this haven of education. ?e new open campus features a design focused on collaborative and project- based learning. each academy is filled with brainstorming alcoves, common areas, lecture spaces, and classrooms. ?e campus is arranged to foster student independence. ?e dining hall has multiple seating areas including a beautiful set of maple stadium stairs perfect for teenagers to group and lunch we have created a family culture where we all can collaborate and grow together. 46 brparents.com | august 2016
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