TRENTON – Nearly a year after water damage from Hurricane Florence destroyed two schools in Jones County, it was time to celebrate Monday as a new school is ready to welcome students when students arrive later this month.

The new PreK-12 school not only replaces the schools that were damaged in the storm but is also the first new school for Jones County in nearly half a century. The facility replaces Jones Senior High School as well as Trenton Elementary and Jones Middle, the two school that were destroyed.

Besides being new, according to Gov. Roy Copper the facility is now the best school in the state of North Carolina.

“This school, our school, is a reflection of the resilience, determination and character of the people of Jones County,” said Jones Senior High School Principal Bryce Marquis in opening comments at Monday’s dedication of the school.

The event was attended by state and school officials as well as students, teachers and community members.

“I think this new school will be great for the children and a great addition to the community,” said Trenton resident Phyllis Brimage, a 1983 graduate of Jones Senior High.

State Sen. Harry Brown said that as a representative of Onslow and Jones counties he sees the difference between a larger, growing county and small, rural Jones County. There was no way, Jones County could build a new school from funds from its tax base.

“I saw the difference between the two and decided the small, rural counties need help,” Brown said.

Brown’s support and help in securing state funds for the new school were recognized during the dedication ceremony and the gymanasium/auditorium of the school is now named in his honor.

Brown, who grew up in Jones County and attended Jones Middles and Jones Senior High, said after the ceremony that he had only learned of the honor a couple days earlier and it was humbling to be recognized.

“This is a big day for me having grown up in this county,” he said.

Funding for the approximately $47.8 million project budget was a challenge for the small, rural county but was made possible through a private-public partnership. The school is owned by Firstfloor Energy Positive and the second leased school in North Carolina.

Firstfloor and partners SfL+a Architects and Metcon Construction designed and constructed the building.

A little more than $30 million of the project was covered by state funds and a grant from the Golden Leaf Foundation. According to the a North Carolina Public Schools release, Jones County received a $15 million grant from the N.C. Education Lottery through the Needs-Based Public School Capital Fund, and the school is the first to be completed using those grant funds.

Work on the new school project was started by Jones County well before Hurricane Florence but the timing of construction became a blessing for the school district, which only had to relocate students displaced from damaged schools for the remainder of last school year.

Students will return to a new state-of-the art facility with an energy-efficient, sustainable design, including geothermal well field heat pumps, high-performance LED lighting, and more than 100,000 square feet of solar panels. The building is expected to create 50 percent more energy than it consumes.

The 123,116-square-foot building has three wings, separating the elementary, middle and high school students. It includes 41 classrooms, four science labs, four collaborative spaces, and six exploratory classrooms.

Jones County Public Schools Superintendent Michael Bracy said the collaboration and teamwork that went into making the new school happen was done with the success of the students in mind.

“It’s not about brick and mortar; it’s about how we create the learning environment that will make an opportunity our students will never forget,” Bracy said.

Rising fifth grader Mason Meadows, a member of the Energy Wise club formed along with the new school, said there is not much he doesn’t like about it.

“I like it all,” he said as he helped with tours.

His grandmother, Nancy Foscue, a kindergarten teacher assistant, said she was at Trenton Elementary when Hurricane Floyd caused damage there and remembers the cleanup required after that hurricane.

“It’s exciting to be getting into something new and not having to clean up and move back in (the old school),” Foscue said.

Reporter Jannette Pippin can be reached at 910-382-2557 or Jannette.

Pippin@JDNews.com .

SCHOOL PHOTOS (John Althouse/JDN): https://www.jdnews.com/photogallery/NC/20190807/NEWS/805009981/PH/1