$45 million, 124,000 sq. ft. Republic Intermediate ready for action

Newly minted Republic Intermediate School to hold open house 
 
Republic R-3 will soon be opening an all-new school in order to house fifth and sixth graders. This new institution, which is to be known as Republic Intermediate School, will have its grand opening on Aug. 11, after two years in the making. 
The project, which was made possible by a 2023 bond issue, was created in hopes that a new school, specifically for grades five and six, could alleviate some pressure on the other schools in the district, according to Jason Perkins, Assistant Superintendent of Operations at Republic Schools. Perkins said that there was an overcrowding problem at the current middle school, which inhabits the building previously used as Republic High School. The building at this point held more students than ever before despite only hosting three grades where there once were four. The new school has the capability to support over 1,000 students, according to Perkins. 
An intermediate school, according to Perkins, is a school that houses fifth and sixth graders; this was not a choice made without reason, though. Perkins said that middle school often brings a level of anxiety to students that can be avoidable. Beyond correcting overcrowding in the middle school, this was perhaps the main goal of the construction of this building: to make the transition into middle school a little bit easier. 
"Our community had discussed about how big of a transition it was for our fifth graders to go from fifth grade, having the same teachers all day long, to sixth grade and having seven teachers in a day," said Perkins.
This new school will be of benefit to parents as well, said Perkins, who noted that this would ease some of the anxiety felt by families with a student in the Republic School system. 
 
Construction details
The building itself was erected by Federal Construction and designed by H Design. Sitting at 124,000 square feet, the building was created with students in mind, said Perkins. The school will feature flex spaces that allow students an opportunity to continue learning in a comfortable space outside of a more dull classroom environment.
The building began its construction in June of 2023 following the passing of a bond issue that paid for the $45 million school in full. While it is not completely finished according to Perkins, he estimated that it is about "99 percent” complete and just awaiting some finishing touches. The principal of the new school will be Chris Stallings. 
"I'm just very thankful for the community support in this, and that once again this will be the fourth project that we've done in the past six years that will be on time and on budget," said Perkins. "We hope the product we provide with their support [will be] something to be proud of."
 
Grand opening
The grand opening of the intermediate school will take place from 5-7 p.m. on Aug. 11 during which students and families, along with any interested community members, are invited to attend. At the grand opening, self-guided tours will be offered following the ribbon cutting at 5 p.m.