Kimo Mahi’s classes at Sprague High School are often full, with 38 students who want to learn about first aid and rehabilitation.
Mahi teaches in the school’s sports medicine program, a popular option for students seeking career technical education.
They’re now able to better care for the school’s athletes — and learn in the process — with larger classrooms and an expanded training area, part of a major renovation of Sprague completed this fall.
Sprague is the fifth of the district’s comprehensive high schools to get a facelift and expansion as part of a 2018 school construction package local voters approved.
The $47 million project wrapped up at the start of the school year after about a year and a half of construction. West Salem High School is the final district high school to undergo renovation, with work scheduled to finish in the spring.
Sprague opened in 1972 and currently serves about 1,670 students. It wasn’t facing the same overcrowding as the district’s larger high schools when the construction package was developed, but many school programs were in spaces less than ideal for helping students learn.
Now, instead of a regular classroom, Mahi’s students can practice their skills in a rehabilitation room with comfortable seats and an array of athletic tape, bandages and other supplies. The area has its own garage door that opens at 7 a.m. so Sprague students needing help can come in and be seen by a fellow Olympian who’s practiced in the art of taping ankles.
The new space also means it’s far easier for teachers to instruct hands-on skills like CPR with more floor space for students to learn.
“We can spread out our bigger classes,” Mahi said.
New spaces for career and technical programs were a major feature of the rebuild. The school’s video production program now has equipment designed for that purpose, including a green screen to film against and a control room.
“The space is amazing,” said Chris Nolan, the video production teacher.
Previously, students had to film items for class in the school library and had no dedicated space, which made professional-quality production difficult and limited what they could do, said principal Chad Barkes. Now, he’s hoping the program can collaborate with other offerings at Sprague by, for example, making marketing videos for the student store or other business programs.
Also added were two new science rooms to better facilitate labs and a larger lunchroom that has space for every student who wants to eat there.
“Everybody comes now to one main area,” Barkes said of the school’s lunch. An expanded corridor between portions of the building means students don’t need to go outside to go between classes.
Kent Porter, a senior and the school’s student body vice president, said the new spaces in the school “feel amazing,” and he can see the impact on his classmates, especially in career technical programs.
Also added were two special education classrooms in a space that formerly held three. The larger areas make it easier for classroom aides to work with students in small groups, and the special education wing now has a kitchen to facilitate teaching life skills, and a bathroom with shower for students who need it.
“It makes my heart feel so good because they’re getting what they need out of Sprague,” Porter said of the new classrooms.
The school also opened a calm room, a spa-like former classroom with couches, plants and quiet areas where students who need a break or want to de-stress can go. District schools are increasingly adding such spaces as one tool to address student mental health needs.
“Getting that quiet and peace is so nice,” Porter said.
Contact reporter Rachel Alexander: [email protected] or 503-575-1241.
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Rachel Alexander is Salem Reporter’s managing editor. She joined Salem Reporter when it was founded in 2018 and covers city news, education, nonprofits and a little bit of everything else. She’s been a journalist in Oregon and Washington for a decade. Outside of work, she’s a skater and board member with Salem’s Cherry City Roller Derby and can often be found with her nose buried in a book.
