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Schools

Students begin new year on new campus

Wiregrass Ranch High School opens. It sure beats portables, students say.

By GINA PACE
Published January 10, 2007

WESLEY CHAPEL - Students hurried into the cafeteria at Wiregrass Ranch High School for the first time Tuesday and then were confused.

They crossed the shining gray linoleum floors, passed the tables with maroon seats and noticed several food lines. Some lines offered salads, deli sandwiches and pizza. Others offered items such as chicken nuggets and french fries.

Students shuffled around, trying to decide where to go.

For most students in the county, Tuesday was just the first day back after the holiday break. But for 750 Wiregrass Ranch students, it was their first day on a new campus. The school, which includes only freshman and sophomores this year, had been meeting in portables behind Weightman Middle School.

"This is much better than Weightman," sophomore Myia Otkins said. "This looks so high tech."

The day started without any glitches, said principal Ray Bonti, and seemed almost like the first day of the school year. Students still had most of the same classes and teachers, but on a new timetable, as the day began nearly three hours earlier at 7:40 a.m. with new bus routes and new classrooms.

"I couldn't get over seeing their faces when they walked in," math teacher Pat LaPorta said. "They were awestruck."

The maroon and gray school has a ranch theme; lassos, cowboy hats and Western-theme pictures decorate the offices. In the middle of a yet-undeveloped part of Meadow Pointe, the property still has something of a frontier feel.

But inside, the hallways and classrooms teemed with suburban teenagers navigating the sleek campus.

Teachers gave the students tours of the $33-million school during first period, including the gym, with sparkling wood floors, and the media center.

But students still had to find their way to that first class.

"I've been lost all day," freshman Joseph Perez said. "I had to figure out what buildings to go to, what lockers, what classrooms. It's confusing, ... but it's way better than portables."

Parents had the chance to tour the school at 6 p.m. Tuesday and then watch the girls basketball team play its first home game.

Deanna Williams, an instructional reading teacher at Wiregrass Ranch, liked watching the students settle in.

"The school feels like home," she said.

"There is awe and excitement at every turn."

Gina Pace can be reached at 352 521-6518 or gpace@sptimes.com.

[Last modified January 10, 2007, 07:32:16]