Team members from Galveston Independent School District, Zero/Six Consulting, Gilbane Building Company, J.W. Kelso Construction and PBK Architects gathered to celebrate the ground-breaking of the new Ball High School. Standing behind the podium in a wall of purple and gold, Ball High School cheerleaders, marching band and ROTC all came out to join in the festivities. Other community members from the GISD District, GISD Visioning Committee and GISD Educational Fund also attended to show overwhelming support for passing the 2023 GISD Bond Program and the new 457,500-square-foot campus.

“As a Galveston County resident and Gilbane employee, I am super proud that our team was selected to build the new high school,” said David Cooper, project executive at Gilbane Building Company. “This is beyond monumental for our community.”

The project will demolish the current Ball High School structure and construct a new building as well as a natatorium and press box at Courville Stadium. The new school will serve 2,500 students, with the two buildings sitting on either side of Avenue O. The project is set to begin construction over summer break and will be completed in two phases. The project is slated for substantial completion in 2025.

“This unique and challenging project will be great for the community and the residents of Galveston County,” said Ahmed Alsaffar, project manager at Gilbane Building Company. “I am grateful to be part of the team and looking forward to starting soon. At Gilbane, we always rise to the challenge. This is another project that will require everybody’s effort to get it past the finish line, but I know we will succeed.”

The high school was originally constructed in 1953 and underwent major renovations in 2007. As part of the 2022 GISD 2022 Bond program, the facility replacement will expand the many programs already offered at Ball High School and address needs identified by the visioning committee. The new facility will be constructed on the existing site of the current building.

“It is time that the kids in Galveston have first-class facilities,” said Dr. Matthew Hay, former GISD trustee and Galveston Educational Foundation board member. “Our children, who are the future of Galveston, the future of Texas and the future of the United States, are going to be taught in first-class facilities. If you can think of our kids and what they produce now and then put them in those facilities, our kids are going to continue to rule the world.”