February 8, 2023 – A long renovation process came to a welcome end when John F. Kennedy High School hosted district administrators, community partners, and most important of all, its own student body, at a grand reopening ceremony on Wednesday morning.
JFK has changed a lot since it was established in the 1960s, when it became one of the first schools in the nation to bear the 35th President’s name. Today’s JFK focuses on providing students with CTE education and career pathways in fields like culinary arts, construction, masonry, health sciences, and more. The renovation has improved floorplans and infrastructure to make better use of these curricula and provide students with more of the tools of the trades they’re pursuing.
“The renovations resulted in a more inviting atmosphere with new and improved facilities that will provide our students with the most advanced technology in the district,” Board of Education Chair Deanna Kaplan said.
Since last school year, students at JFK have been displaced by construction on their campus. However, they’ve still been hard at work in their classes, utilizing space generously provided by Winston-Salem Preparatory Academy. Students have shown resiliency by adapting to another atypical school year, and seniors preparing to graduate in the spring feel all the more prepared for the rigors of professional life as a result.
“Amidst the challenges and uncertainty that we endured, our return this semester is a testament to our ability to overcome,” said Jordan Moore, President of JFK’s Student Government Association.
Previously one of the oldest and least renovated schools in the district, organizing a full-scale remodel for JFK has been a years-long challenge. Even once a plan was settled on, the chaos in the construction industry brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic kept builders and district administrators guessing. However, all of it was done with the enrichment of students in mind, and organizers who’ve toured the new school are delighted with the results.
“I hope these students will love learning in this new facility, and that teachers will love teaching in this new facility, and that we will continue to strive for excellence at John F. Kennedy High School,” Superintendent Tricia McManus said.
Students and teachers who have been displaced by the project are ecstatic to be back at JFK. They’ll be the first to make use of the new and improved school, and their hope is that future generations will some day be able to make it their home as well.
“While we do appreciate all of the hospitality that was shown to us, there’s no place like Kennedy,” JFK Teacher of the Year Rhea Pemberton said.
