‘BACK TO LIFE’: BRENHAM COMMUNITY EDUCATION BUILDING UNDERGOING RENOVATIONS

  

A Brenham ISD facility with nearly 100 years of history is being restored to its former glory.

Renovations are ongoing at the Brenham Community Education Building, which serves as the Pride Academy for accelerated learning and as the site of the school district’s Disciplinary Alternative Education Program.  It has continuously brought in students since being built in 1927, including use as an intermediate school and high school.

Superintendent Dr. Tylor Chaplin said the structure is a unique reflection of Brenham and Washington County and wants to continue to have it play a key role in education. 

Some of the work happening at the building includes repainting of the hallways and refinishing of floor tile.  A focus of late has been the auditorium, where the walls, ceiling and moulding have been repainted, the windows have been glazed, the brick on the outside has been sealed, cracks in the plaster have been fixed, and there are plans to put in carpet. 

Upgrades have also been made in the Rock Gym, with Brent Nedbalek of Triton Air being a key contributor.  New floors have been put in, along with backboards, seating and bathrooms.  A new scoreboard is also in the works.

The renovations are being made gradually as money allows for them, using school district maintenance and operation funds.  Brenham ISD Facilities and Maintenance Director Paul Aschenbeck is overseeing the project.

Many former students who attended school at the Community Education Building have fond memories of their time there and have many stories to tell.  One of them is Ben Seeker, a 1965 graduate who studied for two and a half years at the building before the high school was moved to what is now the junior high school.  He hopes his experiences, which include an anecdote about the freshman rite of passage of getting tossed into a fish pond, can encourage an interest in revitalizing the building so it can continue to be used for modern education.

Dr. Donald Draehn, a member of the 1963 graduating class that was the last class before Brenham High School and Pickard High School integrated, said the Community Education Building has a lot of character and is very significant in the history of Brenham.  He wishes to keep the building functional to where today’s students can see that history firsthand and create new memories there.

The bathrooms are an area that will later see some improvements.  A big ticket item is the heating and cooling system, as the piping that runs through the building is aging and rusting through, but replacing the system is estimated to cost $1.5 million alone. 

Dr. Chaplin encourages the public to get involved in helping to determine what the future looks like for the facility.

Dr. Chaplin said the building can be a point of pride not just for Brenham ISD, but for everyone.  All it needs is some love, and it can truly be a place for “community” education.