On Tuesday morning, the Bartlesville (Oklahoma) School Board voted unanimously to approve the selection of Nabholz Construction Services as Construction Manager for projects that include construction of a new freshman academy at Bartlesville High School, upgrades to Central Middle School and renovations at the Mid High. The projects will be paid for by a $36.7 million bond issue, which received overwhelming support by voters in the September 2013 bond election. “This project means a lot to me and the entire Nabholz Construction team,” said Caleb Rovenstine, Nabholz Project Manager and 2003 graduate of Bartlesville Public Schools.  “I know firsthand how badly our school system needed this bond to pass and I’m very proud to be living in a city that supports our public schools.”

A significant impact of the projects will be the reconfiguration of Bartlesville’s secondary schools. Bartlesville High School, which currently serves juniors and seniors, will expand to serve grades 9-12, eliminating the need for the Mid-High, which will be renovated to replace an aging Madison Middle School. In addition to improving energy efficiency and lowering annual operating costs, this reconfiguration will reduce the number of transitions for students from three to two, which has been linked to higher student achievement and lower drop-out rates.

Work will begin in the spring of 2014 and is expected to be completed by the fall of 2016. The architect for the projects is Ambler Architects of Bartlesville.