Hazleton Area School District opened the doors of three new buildings to start the 2023 academic year, buildings that can now serve more than 1,000 students from pre-school aged to young adults. Students, staff, and faculty were welcomed into the Hazleton Area Academy, the Hazleton Area Arts and Humanities Academy, and the Hazleton Area Cyber Academy.
Isett serves as Engineer of Record for Hazleton Area School District. Working alongside Schrader Group Architecture, teams from the Mechanical/Electrical/Plumbing/Fire Protection, Civil Land Development, and Survey departments had a role in the renovations of the three buildings.
Hazleton Area Academy:
Formerly known as the Gans Building and former site of WYLN TV Station broadcasts, the Academy is three buildings in one. This school now houses 8 classrooms for pre-kindergarten and early intervention students; faculty/administration offices and conference room; a new cafeteria; an indoor playground with climbing wall, swings, and slides; and the district’s warehouse and technology department. Moving students and the warehouse to this new building will open much needed space for more classrooms in the Hazleton Area Career Center and the Hazle Township Early Learning Center.
Hazleton Area Arts & Humanities Academy:
Housed in the former Web.Com building in the CAN DO Corporate Center, the Arts & Humanities Academy now neighbors the Hazleton Area Academy of Sciences. This school, dedicated to intense curriculum focused on the arts and humanities, hosts 130 minute “studio” sessions in dance, chorus, band, theater, and art. Core courses such as English, math and science fill the rest of the school day. Students also can enroll in advanced placement courses to earn college credit. Spaces in the academy include a restaurant-style cafeteria; a craft lab; a Black Box theater; a dance studio with barre practice room; chorus and band rooms built along a soundproof wall; and an art studio where students can paint pieces of the room such as the ceiling tiles.
Hazleton Area Cyber Academy:
While it may be the smallest in size of Hazleton’s newest schools, the new Cyber Academy offers a physical hub for more than 600 students from kindergarten to high school to take virtual classes. Occupying two former store fronts in the Laurel Mall, teachers stream classes live from individual offices while recording the lessons for students to watch later. Each office is outfitted with a large “smart” screen to share diagrams, math problems, notes, etc. and a camera that follows them as they move about the room. The district’s new eSports Center, along with a new spirit store selling Hazelton Area attire is also housed in this space that is colored with pride in Cougar red.
Isett, the Schrader Group and the district officials worked collaboratively to find existing spaces that could be re-proposed to better serve the students of the Hazleton Area School District. These new spaces offer a significant experience of modern amenities and unique offerings.
