Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

$58 Million New Campus Construction in the Works for Residential STEM High School

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 07/11/19

A North Carolina residential STEM high school has broken ground on its second campus.

The North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics is expected to open a western campus in Morganton in August 2021, adding to the original campus located in Durham.

According to news reports, the facility will be about 211,000 square feet and will include existing buildings from the previous school that was on the site that have been renovated along with new construction. Plans are for 300 students from across the state to reside at the school, most, if not all, juniors and seniors. A bond package passed by voters in 2016 provided the project with $58 million, which has an estimated project budget of $73 million.

Residential STEM High School Getting Second Campus

Image: North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics.

A 2017 "educational program vision" for the new school stated that students "will develop knowledge, habits of mind, skills and dispositions from mathematics, science, engineering, computer science and the humanities" in experiences "oriented toward s preparing [them] to respond to opportunities and challenges in a changing world." The curriculum will include data science and artificial intelligence. Learning will provide real-world experiences, as well as student research and mentorships. And recruitment will emphasize identifying and recruiting prospective students from underrepresented communities.

"Expansion to Western [North Carolina] will give even more students the opportunity to discover their interests and talents, to prepare to lead, serve, and tackle the challenges faced by our state, our nation, and our world," NCSSM Chancellor, Todd Roberts, told supporters in a recent letter.

NCSSM, which claims to be the first public residential high school in the country specializing in STEM, is approaching its 40th anniversary and has served as a model for similar schools, many of which now make up the membership of the National Consortium of Secondary STEM Schools.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • classroom with crystal ball on top of a desk

    Call for Opinions: Spaces4Learning 2026 Predictions for Educational Facilities

    As 2025 winds to a close, the Spaces4Learning staff is asking its readers—school administrators, architects, engineers, facilities managers, builders, superintendents, designers, vendors, and more—to send us their predictions for educational facilities in 2026.

  • El Paso District Breaks Ground on New Elementary School

    The Canutillo Independent School District in El Paso, Texas, recently announced that construction has begun on a 119,000-square-foot elementary school, according to a news release. The district partnered with Pfluger Architects, Carl Daniel Architects, and LDCM Solutions on the new Davenport Elementary School, which has an expected completion date of 2027.

  • Preparing for the Next Era of Healthcare Education, Innovation

    Across the country, public universities and community colleges are accelerating investments in healthcare education facilities as part of a broader strategy to address workforce shortages, modernize outdated infrastructure, and expand clinical training capacity. These projects, which are often located at the center of campus health and science districts, are no longer limited to traditional classrooms.

  • Stanford Completes Construction on Graduate School of Education Facility

    Stanford University in Stanford, Calif., recently announced the end of construction on a new home for its Graduate School of Education, according to a news release. The university partnered with McCarthy Building Companies on the 160,000-square-foot project, which involved two major renovations and one new construction effort.