Most first days of school follow a similar rhythm, one of newness and a fresh start: large crowds of excited freshmen gather in the breezeway; loud sounds of empty binders closing and new backpacks zipping echo through every classroom. This August, however, returning students will arrive to find that, not only is there a brand-new, three-story building in the center of campus, but most of their teachers are in completely different rooms.

By June 1, almost all teachers, even those who will not have a classroom in the new STEAM building, will have to pack up their materials to be placed into storage, as construction crews will be demolishing the 10s Building and refurbishing the 20s and 30s Buildings over the summer.

“All of the teachers that are currently teaching in the 10s, 20s, and 30s [Buildings] are having to vacate their classrooms,” principal Adam Littlefield said. “Some teachers may be going back into those classrooms for next year, but most teachers are moving out.”

Littlefield said entire departments will be moving into new locations.

“Social studies is going to be located in the 20s Building,” Littlefield said. “The 20s will also hold the counselors, as well as the College and Career Center.”

The 30s Building, on the other hand, will hold classes for English and World Languages, Littlefield said. Both buildings will undergo refurbishment over the summer.

“There’s going to be new carpeting and new paint,” Littlefield said.

History teacher Dave Keller, who teaches in Room 16, said that he will be moved to a new classroom next year.

“The preliminary conversations have put me in the corner room of the [20s Building],” Keller said.

Despite the need to pack, Keller said that he does not expect preparations for the move to take long.

“There are going to be some people that will have stuff accumulated over the years, and that’s going to be a challenge for them to move,” Keller said. “I don’t have a lot, [so] I’m travelling pretty light.”

On the other hand, science teacher John Savage said that preparations to move will be a lengthy process.

“Every cabinet in every science room is filled with stuff,” Savage said. “That’s probably going to take a week of work.”

Savage said that teachers may have to take their own time to pack.

“Spring break, and other weekend days—we’re going to have to come in and get things organized,” Savage said. “Fortunately, the teachers aren’t being asked to move anything. It’s going to be put into storage and then put into our classrooms for us.”

Littlefield said that storage locations for teachers’ materials have not been finalized yet.

“It’s conceivable that some things could be held in the library,” Littlefield said. “A lot of it will depend on where we are at in terms of the timeframe of packing.”

Littlefield said that packing materials and assistance are available for teachers.

“[Teachers] do the packing, but the moving takes place by other folks” Littlefield said.

Despite this, junior Julia Mascola said that she thinks the preparations to move will be stressful.

“I can imagine if you’ve been in a classroom for a really long time and had everything organized, it would be really stressful to have to change it all and then move,” Mascola said.

Mascola said she thinks that the deadline to pack up, which is three days after school lets out at the end of the year, may affect final exams in some classes.

“Teachers might be either distracted or feeling the pressure of the move,” Mascola said.

Littlefield said that there have not been any formal decisions regarding changes to final exams yet.

“The teachers and I are talking about what the spring is going to look like,” Littlefield said. “We want to make sure we’re connecting with each other in a way that reduces some stress.”

Savage said that he does not expect any impact on students’ exams this year, and hopes that next year, the new STEAM building will provide more resources for students.

“Hopefully we’ll have plenty of bigger classrooms with more space for students to work on labs,” Savage said.

Keller is also looking forward to the new building.

“I’m excited to see it built,” Keller said. “It’s not every day that a school gets to put up a brand new building, and whatever gets put up is going to be there for years and years.”

Mascola, who has a younger sibling in middle school, said that the experience for new students will be different due to the STEAM building.

“I think the idea is interesting that my sister will get used to a totally different campus,” Mascola said.

Furthermore, Mascola said that returning students may need to adjust next year due to the relocation of teachers and the new classrooms.

“It might be one of those things that just takes time,” Mascola said. “I think that releasing a labeled diagram [could be helpful]. None of us really know what the new building’s going to feel like as a student.”

Savage, who attended PHS as a student, said that he will be nostalgic for the 20s Building, which will be repurposed.

“I took chemistry in this classroom. I took all my science classes in this building,” Savage said. “There’s a lot of history in this building.”

Keller felt similarly about his space.

“I’m going to miss [room 16], because I think it’s one of the best rooms in the school,” Keller said. “I’ll be curious to see what they do with the other room—see if I can make it my own.”