$2-Million Renovation Completed at 50-Year-Old Intermediate School

Hawthorne Intermediate School may be almost 50 years old, but it looks almost new after a renovation completed in time for the school year.

The remodeling began in March when sections of the school were closed in phases while students attended classes in double sessions.

On Tuesday, a ceremony was held to celebrate the completion of the $2-million project. Local officials and school board members viewed the school that now has new walls, floors, ceilings, plumbing, electricity, restrooms, playgrounds and landscaping. There also are computer hookups in each classroom.

The overhaul of the school, which was built in 1949, is the first step in the Hawthorne School District’s modernization project to upgrade all nine elementary and intermediate schools. The district will use state Proposition 203 funds approved by voters for schools and colleges in March 1996.

“We have had applications in to the state for a modernization project for 12 years,” said Sara Sellars, director of media services for the district. “This whole thing has finally come together.”