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The library at the Celina Primary School.
CELINA - The public has two opportunities to stroll down the hallways of Celina primary and elementary schools before their doors are shut forever, starting this weekend.
The two schools will host open houses from noon to 2 p.m. Sunday and 6-8 p.m. March 21, affording alumni and others a final chance to rekindle memories of bygone years.
Celina Elementary School gymnasium.
The two schools are set to be abated and razed as part of a massive $130 million project that will consolidate six buildings into two main campuses.
"The buildings and the classrooms will be open for you to walk through," said interim superintendent Brenda Boeke. "It's important for us to reflect on the memories created in these buildings. They have been a hub of activity, laughter and learning for many years and will forever hold a special place in the hearts of the Celina school community. Let's cherish these memories as we move forward into our new building."
Located at 615 E. Wayne St., Celina Primary School, formerly known as Celina East, houses grades K-2. It will be abated and demolished this summer.
Celina Elementary School, previously called Celina West, houses grades 3-4 and is located at 122 W. Logan St. It will be abated and razed in summer 2025.
Celina Elementary School third-grade hallway.
A third-grade classroom at the Celina Elementary School.
A new school for grades pre-K to 6 will include a 115,000-square-foot addition to the existing Celina Intermediate School at 227 Portland Street.
The addition will contain classrooms for grades pre-K to 3, while the 81,000-square-foot intermediate school will be renovated and reformatted to serve grades 4-6.
The addition is expected to be completed by next school year, allowing for partial occupancy. Students in grades pre-K-3 will start the school year in the new addition, Boeke said.
Meanwhile, students in grades 4-6 for the first semester next school year will be taught in Celina Elementary School while the intermediate school undergoes renovation. The renovation should be finished by Dec. 31, and those students will relocate to the intermediate school for the second semester.
Once the project is finished, elementary students will no longer have to transition to a new school every so many years, a change school board president Carl Huber believes will alleviate stress and anxiety and promote stability and academic growth.
"That shock for those students to actually go to a whole new building is gone," he said.
The project will usher in a new era for the district with modern classrooms, state-of-the-art technology and a sense of unity and common purpose among staff and students, officials say.
"There are so many good things going on in the Celina school district … and the new buildings are going to allow that to shine," Boeke said. "Right now the silo effect of having individual buildings doesn't allow the successes to shine."
Officials are currently working on the final design of the new Celina Middle School/High School. Construction is expected to begin this summer.
Celina Primary School front offices.
The building for grades 7-12 will go up between the primary school and high school and should be completed in late fall 2026 or early winter 2027.
Demolition of the existing Celina High School will occur in early spring 2027 and any final site construction will be completed in late spring or early summer 2027, according to the Bulldog Building Project.
"The district is planning to repurpose the existing Middle School building to house the Mercer County Head Start program and the district offices," the building project website states. "There also are plans to maintain the gymnasium and student dining spaces for extracurricular and athletic activities."
Head Start and district offices are currently in the education complex, which will eventually be razed.
A new auditorium/cafeteria and a competition-size gym are planned for the new 7-12 facility but the fate of the fieldhouse is still up in the air.
"We will have community input on that," Boeke said about the eventual decision on the fieldhouse.
A wall clock at the Celina Primary School.
