The answer was always the same.
When superintendent Dr. Donny Lee asked high school students how they liked school in the past, they would respond that “it’s OK.”
After opening up Memorial and Legacy high schools, he now hears students describe school as “awesome” and “great.”
“I keep hearing ‘things are good,’” Lee said. “And a big part of that is you look around and this place is unbelievable, and it’s beautiful and it’s brand new. But when you’re in something this spectacular, it’s a lot easier to appreciate what you’re in and enjoy school more.”
This positive feedback has not only been expressed to Lee by students, but the community. While there was frustration toward ending Rider, Wichita Falls and Hirschi high schools, that has died down.
“(People will say) ‘I was a ‘blank’ alumni, but after seeing the schools I’m a huge supporter of what y’all are doing,’” Lee said. “I have not come across one community member that has said anything negative about these schools once they’ve seen them because how could you? They’re the nicest within 300 miles anywhere you go and everybody’s proud of them.”
Lee acknowledges there are some things the district could have done better throughout the transition from three to two high schools. Considering they were opening two new ones with completely new names, mascots and colors, he feels they did an admirable job.
“We were building the airplane in the air,” Lee said. “There was no playbook, no rulebook. So we probably made some mistakes, but we failed forward. We could’ve gotten communication timelines out faster. We could’ve notified teachers of their placements faster.
“But I think under the conditions and circumstances that we were in, we did the best job that we could to be the only district in the state doing what we were doing.”
Of course, not everything went 100 percent as planned with the construction. One of the biggest issues was Memorial’s auditorium not being completed until a month after school started. Other areas of the school have yet to be completed as the school year wraps up, but Lee isn’t super worried about them.
“The bistro isn’t open, we had some construction delays there,” Lee said. “We’ve had some construction delays on the athletics facilities in the back. So no major problems, just delays in construction and completing the little things that they call ‘punch-list’ items, but 99% of the building is complete. It’s spectacular, and I think the students and staff are pretty proud of it.”
Overall, Lee believes this first year was a success for both schools. His primary goal for next year is to build upon all the great things students and staff have achieved, and tighten the new traditions they established this year.
While Lee will need to continue working hard next year to accomplish these goals, it will also provide an opportunity for him to “take a little bit of a breath.”
“It’s been a privilege to be able to do what I’ve done, but there’s been no greater challenge than opening up two new high schools, while simultaneously opening a middle school (Hirschi),” Lee said. “So next year, we will open up one campus, Rider Middle School. That’s going to feel a lot better than trying to open up three. It’s going to be a lot smoother for 2025-26, no question about it.”
