PHOTOS BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER — A selection of scenes from the Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026, grand opening celebration in Traer for North Tama’s new high school addition and athletic areas. TOP LEFT/PHOTO BY PATTY CALDERWOOD: Members of the school board, including Jenny Sniffin (far left), LeRoy Staker (back row, far left), President David Calderwood (front row, second from left), Seth Seda (obscured–back row, third from right), Doug Dvorak (back row, second from right), and former president/member Rod Zobel (front row, second from left) along with Principal Taylor Howard (far right) and Assistant Principal Jordy Brown (back row, far right) pose with members of the Traer Chamber of Commerce ahead of the ribbon-cutting ceremony. TOP RIGHT/PHOTO BY RILEY SVOBODA: Principal Howard officially cuts the ribbon on the new addition. CENTER LEFT: North Tama athletic director, head wrestling coach, and Redhawk alumnus Andrew Knaack smiles while posing for a photograph in the new wrestling room. CENTER RIGHT: The public tours the second floor of the new addition. BOTTOM LEFT: An open-concept classroom complete with sliding-glass door. BOTTOM RIGHT: Assistant Principal Brown leads a tour of the new addition.

TRAER — Following roughly 15 months of construction, the North Tama high school addition is officially open for schooling.

“A big thank you goes out to our district voters … who jumped on board and voted ‘yes’ for an increase in our levy and the issuing of our bonds,” school board president David Calderwood said on the evening of Tuesday, Feb. 10, as he spoke to more than 50 members of the public, a handful of elected officials, and school staff who had gathered in the junior high commons for a grand opening celebration that included both a ribbon-cutting and open house. As part of the event which had been rescheduled from Jan. 21 due to weather, the district held a 15-minute ceremony to mark the milestone occasion. In addition to Calderwood, speakers included Superintendent John Cain who provided opening remarks; former Superintendent David Hill who, prior to taking a job with Waverly-Shell Rock, led the district through both the facility planning process and subsequent bond referendums; Doug Larson with Larson Construction Co. whose firm was hired as the project’s Construction Manager at-Risk (CMAR); Principal and North Tama alumnus Taylor Howard; retired school board president Rod Zobel; and architect Andrew Bell with the firm Plunkett Raysich Architects, LLP (PRA) which designed the new addition.

Following the ribbon-cutting, the public was given the opportunity to tour the new building, either on their own or with a member of North Tama’s administration conducting guided tours of the two-story space located on the far east side of campus at the corner of US 63 (Main Street) and Sixth Street.

The addition replaces the campus’s deteriorating 1917 building which housed mostly secondary classrooms. The new building was constructed with proceeds from the district’s $14.85 million Phase I bond referendum that passed back in November 2023 after failing by just six votes the previous March. In addition to the new building which opened to students last month after winter break, Phase I also included secure entry upgrades across campus, reconfiguration of the high school locker rooms/weight room/wrestling room in order to become ADA-compliant, paving of the existing back parking lot, and selective maintenance on other parts of campus.

“People were very excited and thrilled to see the improved spaces,” Superintendent Cain told the newspaper in a follow-up email. “Many were pleased with the increased sizes of classrooms, specifically the FCS [family and consumer sciences] and science rooms. In addition, the flexible space our students now have is a real eye-opener. The athletic facility improvements were also an area of emphasis.”

As the public explored the space Tuesday evening, Assistant Principal Jordy Brown could be overheard excitedly telling a tour group, “There is actually a functioning elevator now that isn’t inside a classroom,” – in reference to the 1917 building’s wholly inconvenient elevator.

When asked to share his initial thoughts on the new space, former superintendent David Hill said he was “just amazed,” telling the newspaper the new open-concept design was exactly what his administrative team had envisioned. He also said he would love to come back during school hours to “see kids in classrooms and teachers teaching – to see it all together.”

While the open-concept design of the classrooms – complete with large, sliding-glass doors and collaborative common spaces rather than traditional, narrow hallways – seemed to please the teachers, a smattering of concerns were raised by the public about the safety of such a design in terms of gun violence incidents occurring on school grounds.

“With change, we always experience some level of concerns,” Cain said in an email. “Our open concept has some individuals concerned with school safety. While we have increased a number of school safety measures, all of the levels have not been fully communicated (some of this is intentional). So, we are in the middle of communicating and highlighting the additional levels of committed effort the board has supported to increase the overall safety of our students and staff. Stay tuned.”

As of press time, the 1917 building sits mostly empty, but select spaces are still being utilized, Cain explained, including the library and superintendent offices.

“We will need to continue to utilize small portions of the old building and then find a home for them at the time of demolition down the road. Until then, our plan will be to eventually close off the third floor, move the library down to the second floor, utilize the old FCS area as needed for larger events, maintain a portion of administration space … and a classroom or two. These things should easily fit on the second floor and we will transition as time allows, potentially as late as this summer.”

During his speech to the community Tuesday evening, President Calderwood also addressed the 1917 building, telling the audience, “The process isn’t done. This the first, great, big step in our facility long-range plans. But as we go forward here now and start to pay down our bonds and improve our financial standings over the next few years, we will be coming back to the community – to the district – and asking to continue with Phase II which will probably include … tearing down the three-story, 1917 building. So just keep that in your mind. That’s a continuation of our goals.”

Per previous district communications, the district’s master facility plan includes three more phases with Phase II set to address the 1917 building by demolishing and replacing it with a 25,000 square-foot, one-story addition that would house art, library, a commons, the kitchen, administration, pupil services, and more.

When asked about the addition’s remaining tasks (punch list) which include installing exterior signage, Cain told the newspaper on Thursday, Feb. 12, that the list was still being finalized.

“As with anything, when finishing in the middle of the school year, some things were left unfinished or not as promised,” he said. “Many of these items can be addressed on a Saturday or after hours and have been. A few of them will need to occur over the summer.”

Punch list length aside, the new addition seemed to delight a good portion of those in attendance Tuesday evening, including North Tama alumna, Traer City Councilor Carri Holst who told the newspaper in a statement she was proud of the district’s facility work.

“Phase I of North Tama Community School District’s renovation plan gives current and future students fresh, innovative spaces for learning and athletics. I’m proud to be one of five generations that have (or will) complete their undergraduate education in Traer,” Holst said. She was hardly alone in her sentiments, with Cain himself echoing such comments.

“As superintendent, I am just proud of the support from the community. Our board and school-based team have been incredible throughout the process. Their dedication has made this process move along as smooth as any construction project that I have been a part of (three total). We have a really good product that we can be proud of for many years to come. It will serve many future generations of Redhawks!”