BELLAIRE • MEMORIAL • RIVER OAKS • TANGLEWOOD • WEST UNIVERSITY

The Light at the End of the Tunnel

By Mary-Ellen Abshire, Saint Thomas' Episcopal School, School Buzz Editor | September 11, 2018

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STE's middle and lower school students are in "Scotland Yard," an array of temporary buildings specifically outfitted for an academic setting with the latest technology.

A little more than a year ago, Harvey devastated our city and our school, but every day Saint Thomas’ Episcopal is working hard to build it back up again. Currently the middle and lower school are in a place the student body has affectionately nicknamed Scotland Yard. Scotland Yard is an array of temporary buildings specifically outfitted for an academic setting with the latest technology. It is a happy place buzzing with activity from one-on-one pick basketball games to Highland dancers learning the Scottish fling. One great attribute of Scotland Yard is its closeness in proximity to STE’s main campus. This helps maintain the close-knit community feel Saint Thomas’ students have become accustomed to.

The past year at STE has likely been the most challenging year the 63 year old school has ever seen. After Harvey damaged the school’s lower and middle school buildings, the younger students moved into the high school building which was undamaged by the storm. The high school students then moved to a generous church campus across west Houston. It was during this time period, that Scotland Yard was built. There were a few bumps and hold-ups along the way, but throughout it all the teachers and students were accommodating. Upper School Principal Dale King commented, “I was incredibly impressed how the staff and students handled the change of venue and travel to HCA last year. Though everyone proved to be amazingly flexible and resilient, we are thankful and blessed to be back at our home campus.”

Currently Saint Thomas’ is working on building a new campus, which includes a three story academic building for middle and high schoolers, a wet-proof chapel and a renovated high school building, which the lower school students will move into. Theatre students are especially looking forward to a new box theatre and advanced sound system.

On the anniversary of Harvey, we all gathered together to sing psalms and hymns in the chapel, thankful for how far we’ve come in one year. Seeing everyone together under one roof was one major step in our long road to recovery. An added bonus was the sun shining outside.