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At least a dozen printers were stacked up last week in a classroom at the new Delta High School in Richland.
There also were rows of tables, file cabinets and shelves waiting to be filled. Pretty soon there will be students too.
The new regional public high school focused on science, technology, engineering and math -- or STEM -- will open to about 100 freshmen in the fall.
The school is being housed at Columbia Basin College's former Richland campus near the newly remodeled public library. The school facility has been renovated, with a little last-minute work to finish up before classes begin.
"We're excited to really bring it alive with kids," said Amy Ochander, project manager.
She took a walk last week through the campus, which has a handful of buildings and a central courtyard.
The classrooms and common spaces have techie touches befitting the STEM focus. For example, the building with administrative offices and the lunchroom has "data columns" with electrical outlets so students can charge their laptop computers.
There will be as many computers at the school as students and the campus will be wireless, Ochander said.
The renovation work at Delta has included new paint and flooring and the installation of fire sprinklers, which are needed to bring the building to code for high school students. The work is being covered by in-kind donations from the community and $800,000 from the state.
Some of the money is being saved to remodel one of the Delta buildings into a technology and engineering wing next summer, Ochander said.
The idea is that the Northgate Drive campus will be used for three to five years while officials work on plans for a permanent home, Ochander said.
Classes start Sept. 1. A student orientation is planned Aug. 27 and 28.
The final push to opening day is exciting because of all it has taken to get here, Ochander said.
She was hired to oversee the planning process in fall 2007, not long after the three Tri-City school districts, Washington State University Tri-Cities and Battelle announced they wanted to explore starting a STEM-focused high school. CBC later joined the partnership and offered the use of its former Richland facility as an initial home.
The project got the OK from the three Tri-City school boards early this year.
Delta High will be unique in the Tri-Cities and state. It's drawing teens from all three districts. The first year will only have freshmen, with a grade added each year until there are about 400 students total, officials have said.
The idea is that eventually it will be self-sustaining financially because the money that districts get from the state for each student who's enrolled will follow the Delta teens to the school.
The curriculum will be integrated, with STEM topics woven into lessons across subject lines, officials have said. Internships also are expected to be a significant part of the program.
Nearly 300 students applied to be part of the first freshman class. The 100-or-so slots -- which were divided among school districts based on their total enrollment -- were filled through a computerized lottery held in April. Staff also have been hired.
Ochander is staying on as project manager through August. After that, she'll continue as executive director of the Washington State STEM Education Foundation, a group that was started to raise money for Delta High and promote STEM education in the state.
Phil Ohl, president of the foundation board, said it's gratifying to see the school so close to opening.
"I think our school is going to be one of the cornerstones for the state," Ohl said. "... It's really an exciting time for STEM education in the country. I think we should be really proud our community is going to be leading the way."
-- On the net: www.thedeltahighschool.com
-- Sara Schilling: 582-1402; sschilling@tricityherald.com
