When she saw the architect's plans for the new Junction City High School complex, Blue Jay principal Merrier Jackson knew something special was in the works.
 
But when she saw the finished product?
 
"Of all the descriptors people would have for me, people who know me, one thing they would never tell you is that I'm at a loss for words," Jackson said. "I'm a big talker. But I am at a loss for superlatives to describe this place. It is spectacular."
 
Indeed, the Blue Jays' new home, which had its official ribbon cutting last weekend, more than passes the eye test. Or make it the "I" test.
 
Impressive. Innovating. Inspiring. Inclusive.
 
"Even with all the renderings, the drawings, visiting this site in excess of 30 times over the last year, I could have never envisioned this," Jackson said. "I'm humbled every day I drive by here and come to this facility."
 
Spread across 159 acres west of Junction City, construction on the 437,000 square foot, $135 million facility began in April 2019. Though the final touches at the facility – which measures one quarter of a mile from one end of the building to the other -- won't be completed until late October, the building and its facilities were ready for students in late August.
 
And once the students entered the walls, Jackson said the facility had even more of an impact on her. 
 
"It didn't come alive until the students entered it," Jackson said. "When I'm walking those hall and seeing kids in the study corrals, or the music teacher is out with a choral group singing or kids studying, I almost want to cry. It's that added freedom that they have. There's that added opportunity to have access to things that I never could have envisioned."
 
Indeed, the amenities with the new facility -- the largest high school in the state -- are all-encompassing. Athletic and academic programs all got the A-1 treatment.
 
On the athletic side, new baseball and softball diamonds were built north of the high school with future upgrades planned for each of those fields as well as the addition of a soccer-only field. To the east of the high school lies the football/soccer field, the turf installed by Hellas, circled by a nine-lane track with shot put, javelin, discus and long/triple jump pits surrounding the north and east of the field.
 
The football stadium holds nearly 4,000 people and is flanked by a 31X18-foot state-of-the-art video board. 
 
A weight room lies just to the west of the field on the southeast side of the high school building, sporting doors that open up to the field. Above the weight room and adjoining lockerrooms are a workout room as well as a 3,800 square foot multi-purpose room that can be used by cheer/dance and JRTOC programs. The JROTC program will also have an indoor rifle range located underneath the bleachers in the basketball gymnasium.
 
The main gym is a 2,100 seat, 7,500-square foot space that has a four-sided video board. The auxiliary gym is even larger, an 11,500-square foot space that boasts two full-size courts and a video board broadcasting the action from the main gym.
 
"From a facility standpoint we think we're pretty lucky, not just all school but athletics," Junction City athletic director Matt Westerhaus said. "We'd love to be able to provide a great environment not just for our students but our spectators when they visit Junction City and leave here with an impression that we did things pretty nice, not just the facility but the in-game experience as well."
 
The athletic facilities are matched by those created for other activities at the school.

The 900-seat auditorium features an orchestra pit and balconied seating. Behind the auditorium is dedicated space for theatrical production, while adjacent lies large dressing rooms fully equipped with rows of lighted mirrors and individual changing stations.
 
On the north side of the building is an auto body shop outfitted with eight working bays. Across the hall is a welding room.
 
The average classroom size is 900 square feet and each is tailored to the subjects being taught. Teachers that once had to share spaces with their colleagues now have a place of their own.
 
No department in the school was ignored.
 
"If it seems like everyone got what they wanted, well it's because they had a voice in the design," Jackson said. "I'm just amazed that our architect infused all that information and incorporated it into this."
 
"The students and staff are very excited and enjoy the flexibility that our facility provides," Westerhaus said. "We haven't been able to utilize everything to the fullest extent yet, not just for P.E. and athletics, but the entire school."
 
With nearly 1,600 students and more than 150 staff members occupying the new facility, Westerhaus said he's already noticed a difference in the overall school environment.
 
"I think it's huge," he said. "The kids and community are excited, not just by the building but what we can provide. There's been a boost of morale, pride, spirit with that. Any time you can walk into a building and being prideful about being in there and what is going on, it just adds to what we're providing."