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Halifax K-8 School
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In August 2016, Halifax County's new superintendent, Dr. Eric Cunningham, stepped onto a school bus in the western part of the district to understand his students' daily experience. His journey revealed a pressing challenge: some students spent more than two hours commuting each day.
This discovery sparked a district-wide initiative that would culminate in an ambitious solution—a new consolidated school designed to transform educational access for hundreds of students in the western part of the county.
District-Wide Evaluation
In 2019, Halifax County Schools began working with Moseley to evaluate eight campuses through a detailed capital needs assessment. Engineering teams examined everything from exterior walls to mechanical systems, documenting required improvements for each building's infrastructure. Their analysis would determine whether the district could maintain its facilities during a five-year period without access to annual lottery funding—a requirement tied to receiving need-based grants.
Two elementary schools stood out during the assessment. Hollister Elementary Leadership Academy, with 162 students and 11 classroom teachers, had served the community for more than 60 years. Its counterpart, the slightly older Pittman Elementary Leadership Academy, educated 127 students with 10 teachers. Neither school could support full-time counselors, media specialists, or nurses. Small student populations forced the district to hire additional teachers to prevent combination classes, draining resources that could have funded educational programs.
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Spaces That Support Learning
The two-story, 101,000-square-foot building reflects the community's educational priorities. Learning stairs create flexible gathering spots where students can work independently or in groups. Outdoor learning areas connect children with nature while expanding classroom boundaries. The design places the gymnasium, auditorium, dining area, and media center at the heart of the building, making these shared spaces easily accessible to all grade levels.
Pre-kindergarten classrooms serve a crucial role beyond early education. Research shows that PK programs help reduce academic achievement gaps between income groups by building cognitive, social, emotional, and physical skills at critical developmental stages. For working parents—especially single-parent households—these classrooms provide structured, affordable childcare that enables daytime employment.
From Planning to Reality
The project gained momentum in April 2022 when Halifax County Schools received a $31.27 million grant from the Needs-Based Public School Capital Fund. Additional funding arrived during fiscal year 2022-2023, when the North Carolina General Assembly awarded $7.81 million in Education Lottery funds. By December 2022, the community gathered to break ground on the site.
The master plan also considers future growth. Site layouts demonstrate how the PK-8 facility could eventually expand to serve high school students, should the district acquire additional land and funding. This advance planning gives Halifax County Schools a foundation for future funding requests.
When complete, the 540-student school will bring comprehensive academic and social services to western Halifax County. The building embodies what matters most to this community: shorter bus rides, stronger educational programs, and a place where elementary and middle school students can learn together close to home.
Design Through Dialogue
The solution emerged through analysis: build a consolidated PK-8 facility at the former Eastman School site. This location would slash commute times for 300 students previously assigned to Davie Middle School while creating a central location for both elementary populations.
During design workshops, Managing Principal Ashley Dennis posed four questions to participants: What activities would students be doing? What would make citizens proud of their new school? How would people describe the completed building? What signs would show the school's success? The answers consistently emphasized learning, student needs, collaboration, community connection, and embracing diversity.
Parents, teachers, school board members, and residents divided into three groups, each working with an architect to develop concepts. They discussed how spaces should connect, which areas needed to be adjacent, and how the building could best serve its users. The next day, each group presented their ideas. The design team then created a hybrid plan combining the strongest elements from the first two groups' proposals.
Spaces That Support Learning
The two-story, 101,000-square-foot building reflects the community's educational priorities. Learning stairs create flexible gathering spots where students can work independently or in groups. Outdoor learning areas connect children with nature while expanding classroom boundaries. The design places the gymnasium, auditorium, dining area, and media center at the heart of the building, making these shared spaces easily accessible to all grade levels.
Pre-kindergarten classrooms serve a crucial role beyond early education. Research shows that PK programs help reduce academic achievement gaps between income groups by building cognitive, social, emotional, and physical skills at critical developmental stages. For working parents—especially single-parent households—these classrooms provide structured, affordable childcare that enables daytime employment.
From Planning to Reality
The project gained momentum in April 2022 when Halifax County Schools received a $31.27 million grant from the Needs-Based Public School Capital Fund. Additional funding arrived during fiscal year 2022-2023, when the North Carolina General Assembly awarded $7.81 million in Education Lottery funds. By December 2022, the community gathered to break ground on the site.
The master plan also considers future growth. Site layouts demonstrate how the PK-8 facility could eventually expand to serve high school students, should the district acquire additional land and funding. This advance planning gives Halifax County Schools a foundation for future funding requests.
When complete, the 540-student school will bring comprehensive academic and social services to western Halifax County. The building embodies what matters most to this community: shorter bus rides, stronger educational programs, and a place where elementary and middle school students can learn together close to home.
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