'A lot more spacious:' Students give good reviews of new Tusky Valley Middle-High School

Jon Baker, The Times-Reporter
·5 min read

ZOARVILLE ‒ Students at Tuscarawas Valley Local Schools are settling into their new middle-high school, which opened this month.

So far, they like it.

"It's definitely a lot more spacious," said junior Roman Farnsworth. "The low ceilings in the old high school, you felt closed in and like you were trapped. It's a lot more open. The working lockers are very nice, because the old ones used to get jammed a lot and you'd have to call a custodian and be late to class and all that good stuff. The classrooms are nice. They feel a lot less closed in, like they're a lot more open."

Students work on their laptops at the new Tusky Valley Middle-High School, Thursday, September 7 in Zoarville
Students work on their laptops at the new Tusky Valley Middle-High School, Thursday, September 7 in Zoarville

Tilor Waltz, a junior, likes the fact that the new building has air conditioning, as well as the Trojan Stairs, a set of gathering stairs between the first and second floors of the school where students can meet or do homework.

Tusky Valley school superintendent Derek Varansky gives the Times-Reporter a tour of the new Tusky Valley Middle-High School, on Sept. 7. The 115,000-square-foot facility houses around 600 students in grades seven through 12. It replaces a 60-year-old building which is much smaller at 78,000 square feet.
Tusky Valley school superintendent Derek Varansky gives the Times-Reporter a tour of the new Tusky Valley Middle-High School, on Sept. 7. The 115,000-square-foot facility houses around 600 students in grades seven through 12. It replaces a 60-year-old building which is much smaller at 78,000 square feet.

"I think it's nice to have more reliable things, like working lockers and that kind of stuff," said junior Peyton Brothers. "I also agree that the stairs are really nice." She said she uses the stairs every day.

Principal Jason Phillips said the building's climate control feature is what students have commented on the most on so far.

"You're comfortable, you're ready to learn, instead of sometimes they're so hot it's unbearable, and sometimes the rooms are so cold you're not even focusing," he said of the old high school.

More on building project: Designed for future generations: Tusky Valley moves forward with building project

New school's features

The 115,000-square-foot facility houses around 600 students in grades seven through 12. It replaces a 60-year-old building which is much smaller at 78,000 square feet. The new school features a competition-sized gymnasium, a 504-seat auditorium with an orchestra pit and makeup and changing rooms, flexibility for space and seating, huge windows to provide natural light and the latest technology.

Paul Dunlap teaches a principles of engineering class at the new Tusky Valley Middle-High School, Thursday, September 7 in Zoarville.
Paul Dunlap teaches a principles of engineering class at the new Tusky Valley Middle-High School, Thursday, September 7 in Zoarville.

"The amount of technology and what can be done now is going to take everything we do just to the next level," Phillips said.

This has allowed the district to add a computer science course and an AI (artificial intelligence) course, he said.

All students and visitors entering the building come through one set of doors and are checked in at the office. The hallway leading to the gymnasium features a legacy wall with a video screen showing pictures of previous Tuscarawas Valley graduating classes. Above the entrance to the gym is a giant Trojan head, the school mascot, painted by artist Mark Bolitho. A red and black color scheme ‒ the school colors ‒ can be found throughout the facility.

A Trojan head painted by Mark Bolitho greets students as they walk in the doors to the new Tusky Valley Middle-High School.
A Trojan head painted by Mark Bolitho greets students as they walk in the doors to the new Tusky Valley Middle-High School.

The new building is also handicap accessible.

"All of our buildings previous to this one had only stairs, so we were constantly putting in lifts and ramps and figuring out how students with disabilities or those that had a hard time walking, how to get them around the building," said Superintendent Derek Varansky. "It really caused some of them not to participate in things because there were areas of the buildings inaccessible. Anybody can be anywhere in this building. I love that."

Derek Varansky, superintendent of Tusky Valley School, left, and Jason Phillips, principal at Tusky Valley Middle-High School, are shown in the new facility that features a competition-sized gymnasium, a 504-seat auditorium with an orchestra pit and makeup and changing rooms, flexibility for space and seating, huge windows to provide natural light and the latest technology.

In addition, the building has a sound enhancement system that allows teachers to better communicate with students with hearing impairments. The system was also installed in the student dining area and gymnasium. Members of the general public attending sporting events can wear a headset connected to the sound system so they can hear what the announcer is saying.

Building project underway

Tuscarawas Valley Local Schools is in the midst of a nearly $58 million building project. Work is ongoing to renovate and expand the existing middle school building next to the middle-high school to house students from pre-kindergarten through the sixth grade. It is expected to open next year.

In the meantime, most elementary students are attending classes in the old high school building at the front end of the campus. Students in pre-kindergarten through the first grade are housed at the district's building in Mineral City.

The project is being funded without a bond issue or a tax increase. The district is using tax revenue from the Rover Pipeline, which was built through the northeastern portion of Tuscarawas County. The state is assisting with funding, providing 39% of the money, with Tuscarawas Valley responsible for 61%.

The auditorium is still under construction. It should be completed by December and was locally funded, with several families and businesses helping to pay for it.
The auditorium is still under construction. It should be completed by December and was locally funded, with several families and businesses helping to pay for it.

The auditorium at the middle-high school is still under construction but should be done by Dec. 1. It will have its own entrance and lobby for ticket sales. The auditorium was locally funded, with several families and businesses helping to pay for it.

"We've tried to design this place to be as flexible as possible," the superintendent said. "Of course, everything was with safety in mind, so we wanted the minimum amount of entrances and exits as possible. Definitely exits to get out, but we wanted to control where our public was coming in, so we knew who was entering the building."

The public got a chance to see the new facility during a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house on Aug. 31. Around 1,000 people attended.

An extended learning area is one of many unique features of the new Tusky Valley Middle-High School.
An extended learning area is one of many unique features of the new Tusky Valley Middle-High School.

"I just enjoyed standing back under the legacy wall and watching people's faces as they came in the building, especially our kids," Varanksy said. "They've heard about it, we've had drawings up, they had an opportunity last year to come over and see what it was looking like or what the construction site was like, but to see their faces. It's all great but it really is all about them. They're the reason that we did it."

Reach Jon at 330-364-8415 or at jon.baker@timesreporter.com.

This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: New Tusky Valley Middle-High School passes students' expectations