St. Andrew’s Episcopal School marked a significant milestone in its expansion efforts with a Ground Blessing Celebration for a new Athletic Center and Student Union. This event, held on the school’s Southwest Parkway campus, signaled the start of construction on a facility set to open in the 2025-2026 school year.
The celebration featured the sounds of an excavator turning soil and was attended by students, families, and supporters. Melissa Grubb, Head of School, expressed enthusiasm for the project’s potential to enhance the school’s facilities, emphasizing its alignment with the institution's mission to support the holistic development of its students.
The new complex is part of St. Andrew’s ambitious ‘Raise the Roof’ Capital Campaign. The first phase of the project, funded by an initial $18 million, will see the completion of the building’s exterior and essential infrastructure. The campaign, led by co-chairs Roger Sandau and Yvette Rios, with support from a campus task force, architectural firm LPA, and construction firm Harvey Cleary, aims to raise an additional $14 million to complete the interior.
The new Athletic Center and Student Union will serve as a central hub for campus life, featuring a competition gym with an 800-seat capacity, a 5,000-square-foot Indoor/Outdoor Sports Performance Center, practice courts, a dance studio that doubles as a golf practice room, and modern locker rooms. The Student Union will provide spaces for studying, club activities, and community events.
Grubb highlighted the importance of the new facility in fostering school spirit and supporting student-athletes. “We dreamed BIG here – not only to support our student-athletes but to build community, school spirit, and pride at St. Andrew’s,” she said.
The ‘Raise the Roof Campaign’ has already garnered recognition, receiving a Communicator Distinction Award from the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts.
The Ground Blessing ceremony also included a “Hopes and Dreams” exercise, where students wrote their aspirations for the new facility. These messages will be incorporated into the building’s foundation, symbolizing the hopes of the school’s current students for future generations.
For more information about St. Andrew’s Episcopal School and the ongoing capital campaign, visit www.sasaustin.org.
Photo Credit: Darcie Westerlund
