Tarrant Middle - High School

This 112,000 sq. ft. facility consists of 36 classrooms, administrative offices, a com¬petition gym and physical education gym. State-of-the-art science labora¬tories and distance learning classrooms provide students access to the latest technologies in education. Polished concrete floors throughout add a modern feel to the hallways and class¬rooms. The exterior is brick with EFIS façade highlighted with a glass radius wall in the media center.

This is the first new school for Tarrant City since 1912. The new Tarrant Middle-High School was the final school in the state to provide distance learning classrooms and give the students the opportunity and access to courses they only once dreamed about. Once the school opened, the Alabama Governor held a press conference there to highlight this achievement and to tour the school.

Golden & Associates was awarded the project through the hard bid process in April 2008, with the original construction to be complete by October 2009. Golden’s project team saw an opportunity to not only speed up construction, but give the children the chance to start the school year in the new school instead of half way through the year. The project was complete three months ahead of schedule and open in time for the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year.

A unique and notable feature about the project was the reuse of boulders found on the jobsite. Eleven boulders approximately the size of a car were found and kept to be used in the final landscaping. These boulders were so massive that it took two of the largest forklifts available working in unison to move these huge boulders into place. Also, while the site contractor was hoe ramming the unused boulders into rip rap for erosion control, they discovered an approximately 1 million year old solidified fern root inside one of the boulders, per a University of Alabama Professor. This fossil was turned over to the school for use in teaching in science classes.

Owner:
Tarrant Board of Education

Architect:
McElrath & Oliver Architects

Completion:
July 2009

Location:
Tarrant, Alabama

Budget:
$17 million