Thomas Jefferson High School and Walnut Hill Academy Slated to Open January 2023
Construction on Walnut Hill International Leadership Academy and Thomas Jefferson High School — two of the hardest hit schools in the October 2019 tornado — is nearing completion.
Dallas ISD released aerial footage of the construction of both campuses, which are slated to open in January 2023.
The renovated, 330,000-square-foot Thomas Jefferson High School campus is home to much of the existing 64-year-old building with refurbishments and additions. These include a new competition gym, weight room, athletic improvements, renovations of existing educational spaces and performing arts spaces, new computer science labs, a new library, and new administrative areas.
The new Walnut Hill Campus will be 125,000 square feet serving pre-K through eighth-grade students. The campus will provide separate academic spaces for the elementary and middle school students with a shared library, cafeteria, practice field, courtyard, and a secure entry for students and parents.
(READ: Meet Walnut Hill Academy’s New Principal)
The district’s Board of Trustees approved $132 million in construction projects for the site in January 2020. More than $82 million was allocated to Thomas Jefferson High School renovations (Thomas Jefferson was already undergoing renovations when the tornado hit), and almost $50 million went toward Walnut Hill’s new campus.
