VIDOR, Texas — Vidor Independent School District officials announced a tentative opening date for their new middle school campus.
Tropical Storm Harvey destroyed Vidor Middle School and Oak Forest Elementary in 2017.
FEMA played a big role in the rebuilding process, helping Vidor ISD with $18.6 million for the project.
In October 2021, members from the school district and the community gathered to celebrate the groundbreaking of the rebuild project.
Now a year and a half later, 5th and 6th grade students are expected to return to the 117,298-square-foot campus by January 2024.
Vidor Middle School's foundation is set and walls are up, along with additional safety features like intruder detection and bulletproof windows in the main entry.
Students will also enjoy upgraded science labs, a gym, band hall, choir room, auditorium and an outdoor common area.
Vidor Middle School will accommodate 800 students.
It's took years after the storm to get the engines running and the funds to rebuild the two schools. Students have been without a regular classroom ever since.
“Our fifth-grade students are housed on our high school campus in portable buildings. Our sixth graders are on our junior high campus in portable buildings, and those campuses are not near each other,” one Vidor ISD teacher previously told 12News.
In 2021, G and G construction began rebuilding Oak Forest Elementary. The new designs for the school's structure included lifting the building 18 inches off the ground.
The district is confident the elevated structure will defend against future flood situations.
Oak Forest Elementary staff and students returned to their new campus January 2023.
