Spalding wraps up 10-year building project

It has been 10 years since Dr. Michael Murphy, president of Archbishop Spalding High School, began asking parents, alumni, staff and students what could be done to make the school better.

After a decade of planning, fundraising and building, the Severn school has wrapped up a $7 million series of projects that include a new arts and technology wing, athletic complex and artificial turf football field.

"Everything that we do here is to give our students the best opportunities that we can," said Murphy. "We didn't want to add (more) students, we wanted to give more opportunities to our students."

The renovations shifted the front of the school so it now faces out over the new athletic fields, with a curved entrance to the brand-new arts and technology wing.

"We really wanted to make a statement about who we are as an institution," Murphy said.

To the right of the entrance is the chapel, with stained-glass windows that look over the parking lot and speak to the school's Catholic heritage.

To the left and across a small grassy courtyard is the athletic complex, with a basketball gym that seats 1100 people and a fitness room looking over the new artificial turf football field.

In the center, the school's art classrooms and technology labs speak to a growing focus on engineering and the arts.

"There's a huge interest in engineering," said Kathy Mahar, the school's principal.

She is leading the effort for a new "Project Lead the Way" initiative that partners with the University of Maryland Baltimore College and Northrop Grumman to provide pre-engineering courses.

The program will begin next year.

"It's pretty rigorous," Mahar said. "We don't even know the potential (yet)."

The new wing is designed with bright lights and curving, white-walled hallways; student artwork is featured on the walls.

"It's supposed to be free-flowing," Murphy said. "The idea was to be as open and light as possible."

Upstairs, a video conference room will open up distance-learning possibilities, and a lab with 25 I-Mac computers will encourage future designers. There are also two PC computer labs on the second floor.

"It gives us a lot more flexibility," he said.

The new front of the school just opened a few weeks into this school year, and construction crews were still adding the finishing touches to the entrance last week. Inside, workers were setting up video systems.

"This is where a lot of the technology starts," Murphy said.

Across the grassy courtyard is the other half of the extensive project, and the one that was finished first. The athletic complex has been in use for about 3½ years.

"This is really nice, and we're really proud of (the championships won), but what we're really proud of is what schools (students) are able to get into," Murphy said.

Students were accepted into all of the Ivy League schools last year, as well as several service academies.

"(Archbishop Spalding) provides them with a foundation that allows them to go into the future."

The project began - and ended - with the athletic fields.

The first step had been to buy the 24.5-acre farm next door. And it is ending with the football stadium; the first game on the new artificial turf field was this season, and the bleachers and an eight-lane track will be finished next year.

In all, the project is costing the school $7 million, of which about $2 million is still outstanding.

"Even with the economy that we've had, we have been incredibly blessed," Murphy said.

'Let's go'

The vast majority of donations came from alumni and parents.

"We go to individuals one on one and say, 'This is the dream,'" he said. "It's not the size of the gift (that's important), but that they support us."

Bob Bradshaw, chairman of the school's Board of Directors, said that the board was "chomping at the bit" as soon as they heard about the projects.

"When we rolled out 'Transforming our Dreams,' they said, 'Let's go,' " he said. "There was no discord, we coalesced around this."

Many board members - also local business owners - donated services or money; one showed up one morning with sod and crepe myrtle bushes, and another poured the asphalt base for the track.

"We're really committed to making sure that Mike's vision (is achieved). We made it happen," he said.

Looking ahead, Murphy said the school is looking to maintain and improve what they have, like updating the auditorium.

But they're not looking to grow enrollment at this time; the school turned away 300 applying freshman this year.

"We're right at the maximum that we want," he said. "We've been very fortunate at getting the support of this community."