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SANDY — After two years of construction, the rebuilt Mount Jordan Middle School welcomed its first 320 students on Tuesday.
As students ran around looking for their lockers and hugging their friends, principal Molly Hart strolled down the main hall pointing out the kinks still being worked out — some glitchy electrical panels here, a media room missing chairs there.
It was an emotional day for Hart, who joined Canyons School District three years ago to help work on the new school.
"We sat down and we had a vision," Hart said. "We knew where we wanted it to be, but the road there was not paved yet."
Funded by a $250 million bond approved by voters in 2010, Mount Jordan Middle School is the sixth school that Canyons School District has rebuilt or fully renovated since 2009.
Two years ago, workers tore down the building that had stood for 61 years at 9360 S. 300 East.
In its place, Hart said school officials envisioned a progressive, state-of-the-art building designed to encourage collaboration and self-directed learning.
The resulting structure, with its glass-walled media rooms, collaboration spaces and swirling floor designs reflecting the proportions of the Earth's core, looks equal parts tech office and middle school.
The 200,000-square-foot building boasts a two-story fitness facility with 14 basketball hoops, an auditorium with a full cable rigging system and an infrared audio enhancement system for teachers that automatically hooks up to speakers in the classroom.
One of the hardest parts of the process was convincing teachers of the vision, according to Hart, who said it took "hard conversations and leaps of faith" to get to opening day.
The design choices aren't just aesthetic, according to Canyons spokesman Jeff Haney. He noted that 50 percent of the school's students are from low-income homes.
"For them to walk into this school and know that we've invested in their education — that's important," Haney said.
Enrollment at the school has risen steadily since 2012-13, when 639 students attended. This year, 925 students are enrolled, according to Hart.
On Tuesday, however, the sixth-graders had the building to themselves, a half-day orientation in preparation for Wednesday's first full day of school.
That's been a tradition in Canyons School District since 2009, Haney said. During the half-day, students can find their classrooms and lockers without being intimidated by older students.
"They find out that it's not so big and bad," Haney said.
Ana, a sixth-grader who stopped to ask for directions to her science classroom, said she was "really happy."
"I couldn't stop thinking of school (last night)," Ana said.
She said her favorite part of the building was the swirling reds, yellows, greens and blues repeated throughout the building — a design element Hart said chose to avoid designating specific school colors.
That symbolizes that "all students are welcome here," Hart said.
For Hart, the day had some personal meaning, too.
She couldn't resist peeking into a classroom to catch a glimpse of her son, who was also starting sixth grade.
When the boy noticed his mom watching him, he gave her an embarrassed look.
"I gotta pretend like I don't know him!" Hart laughed, ducking out of sight. She would allow him to find his own way. Email: dchen@deseretnews.com Twitter: DaphneChen_
