On October 16, the Bear Creek Elementary School community and Austin ISD celebrated the grand opening of the first new school built as part of the 2017 Bond Program. Below is a full recording of the virtual grand opening ceremony, clips of Principal Crissey cutting the official ribbon, a tour of the new school and a video of students showcasing their spaces.
The new campus is designed with sustainability in mind, incorporating the topography of the landscape. Bear Creek comprises a one-story building with public spaces and a three-story academic building that blends into the site’s natural slope. Two enclosed bridges connect the buildings, providing the framework for the courtyard, which is designed for outdoor learning opportunities. It includes a small amphitheater, learning stairs that provide flexible seating and activity space, and a dry creek bed. One of Bear Creek’s most notable features is the elevated, outdoor classroom, which extends over the undisturbed land to the south, providing great views for students to learn about the habitat of the natural environment. With a current capacity of 522 students, its core spaces (media center, fitness space and dining commons) are built larger to accommodate a planned future addition, which will bring total student capacity to 696.
While we wish we were able to hold this event in person, due to health and safety reasons, the district opted for a virtual event to ensure the full school community was still able to celebrate the grand opening of Bear Creek Elementary School. The event was held virtually via Zoom webinar and featured remarks from Superintendent Dr. Stephanie Elizalde, Board of Trustees Vice President Cindy Anderson, At-Large Position 8, Trustee Yasmin Wagner, District 7, and Bear Creek Principal David Crissey.
The program for the event can be found here.
Follow along with the video using the closed captioning found here.
Watch the recording of the full event:
In lieu of a physical gathering for the Bear Creek grand opening, Principal Crissey visited the campus to cut the ceremonial ribbon on behalf of the school community and gave us a look inside the school. Check it out:
We asked teachers to capture photos and videos of the Bear Creek Cubs enjoying their new spaces. Watch below:
