School starts in the District on Monday, but some students jumped at the opportunity to roam the halls on a Saturday. It’s hard to blame them, since it was a chance for current students and former alumni to tour the brand new Benjamin Banneker Academic High School.
City leaders gathered at the corner of 9th and Rhode Island in Northwest to cut the ribbon on the new $135 million facility, which Mayor Muriel Bowser called “state of the art.”
Banneker Principal Anita Berger was just as excited as the more than 100 people who gathered for the ceremony on a hot, summer day.
“Words can not express what I’m feeling right now,” Berger said. “This is much more to me than a beautiful building. This is a heartfelt moment for me.”
“Welcome home, Achievers,” she added. “Welcome to our new home.”
The new building is boasts all new technology inside and incorporates dog and skate parks outside the facility to create a community gathering place.
Banneker High School sees 100% of its graduates go on to college, according to Mayor Bowser.
And while students are working hard inside, “the building will soon be working to generate more energy than it uses through the use of geothermal wells and solar panels,” said Tiffany Moore, with the Department of General Services.
