Cornelius Elementary School Campus (2025)

Welcome to the new Cornelius Elementary School!

After starting in spring 2024, construction of the new Cornelius Elementary School is complete! Staff prepared their new building to welcome students for the 2025-26 school year. The building and parking lots are located at the north side of the campus, and play areas and field are in the southeast section. Between the building wings are the playground for pre-K children on the west side and an outdoor classroom area on the east side. Solar rooftop panels are expected to provide an estimated 270 kW of power and nearly 324,500 kWh of energy in year one.

In the sections below, you may view the architect's renderings in the design gallery, as well as the project archives.

Design Gallery

Campus aerial view / vista aérea del campus

Main entry plaza / plaza de entrada principal

Family resources center — Family resource center / centro de recursos familiares

main entrance and plaza — Main entrance and plaza

rubberized tile installation on playground — Installing rubberized tiles on the playground

library nook — One of the nooks in the library

preschool classroom — Preschool classroom

memorial artwork in gym alcove — Memorial artwork made from old campus trees

Mt. Hood glass mosaic — Mosaic by teacher Leah Henriksen

handprint artwork — Artwork from the old school...

Aug. 22, 2025

aerial view of northwest of Cornelius campus — Aug. 22: parking lots are striped, asphalt added around playground

aerial view of concrete pour at entry plaza — Concrete is poured at the entry plaza

aerial view of concrete workers — Crew members smooth out the concrete

aerial view of partially-completed playground — Asphalt surrounds the play structure...

aerial view of partially-finished swingset area — ...and the swingset area

aerial view of nearly-finished pre-K playground — Synthetic turf has been added to the pre-K playground

Landscaping in pre-K playground — Landscaping has been added in the playground...

Trees about to be planted around building — ...and is being planted around the building

Aug. 18, 2025

aerial view of campus construction — Aug. 18: parking lot and play area construction continues

aerial view of field light — Field lights will allow evening use of the play field

play structure being assembled — The play structure is being assembled

rubberized tile being added to swingset area — Rubberized tile is added to the swingset area

mural panel in lobby area — Beautiful murals line the lobby area

completed reception area — The reception area is ready for staff move-in

completed cafeteria with polished floor — The cafeteria floor gleams after polishing

equipment being moved out of gym — Equipment is being moved out of the gym

completed library ready for books — The finished library awaits shelving of books

science kits on cart in maker space — Science kits and more are moved into the maker space

Aug. 18, 2025 - VIDEO: Field Light Installation

Aug. 6, 2025

gym hallway "memorial" wall — The "memorial" hallway next to the gym is being prepared

installing partition between lobby and commons — Partition and doors separate the lobby and commons area

finishing application of large lobby mural — Crew members finish installation of the mural in the lobby area

More casework installed at reception desk

furniture in family resource center — Furniture has been installed, including in the family resource room...

furniture moving into library — ...library...

furniture in classrooms — ...classrooms...

furniture in learning activity area — ...learning activity areas...

furniture in maker space — ...and the maker space

new drinking fountain — New drinking fountains have bottle fillers

July 31, 2025

aerial view of grading on construction site — July 31: grading continues for the parking lot and field areas

filling curb forms with concrete — Crew members fill curb forms with concrete in the bus loop area

augering a hole for a light pole base — An auger forms a hole for a light pole base

adding weatherproofing material to entrance canopy — Final application of weatherproofing goes on the main entrance canopy

installng carpet tile around reception desk — The reception desk has been installed, carpet tiles are applied in the main office area

smoothing out wall mural edges — A crew member smooths out edges of the mural in the entrance foyer

installing basketball hoops in gym — Retractable basketball hoops are installed in the gym

service equipment in cafeteria undergoing finishing touches — Service equipment has arrived in the cafeteria

plastic sheeting protects new library carpet — Plastic sheeting protects new library carpet as casework is installed

July 23, 2025

laying electrical conduit for parking lot light poles — July 23: electrical conduit is laid to supply light poles for the parking lots

aerial view of drainage fabric and gravel in the parking lots — Drainage fabric and gravel are applied to the parking lots

masons laying brick at front entrance — Brick is being laid at the front entrance

view of nearly-finished front entrance from the commons — The view of the front entrance from the commons

sinks and dishwashing equipment in kitchen — Sinks and dishwashing equipment have been installed in the kitchen

nearly-complete pre-K playground — The pre-K playground is nearly complete

outdoor classroom concrete finishes — Concrete defines spaces for the outdoor classroom area

library cleared for floor finishing — The library is being cleared to finish the floor

July 17, 2025

aerial view of parking lot excavation — July 17: excavation has begun for the parking lots

aerial view of canopy roofing installation — Crew members add roofing material to the entrance canopy

bricklaying along wall under covered play canopy — Masons apply brick to the wall under the covered play canopy

installing gym floor — The gym floor is being installed

installing insulation on overhead water pipes — Insulation covers up pipes near the entrance

installing security cabling at front entrance — Security cabling is wired through the entrance doorway

view of lobby ceiling grid and globular lighting — Lighting and ceiling grid provide a dramatic flair to the lobby area

paneling along grand staircase — Paneling is applied along the grand staircase

kitchen equipment ready to be installed — Kitchen equipment awaits installation

installing wiring in fire safety panel — A crew member installs wiring in a fire safety panel

pre-k play structure nears completion — The pre-K play structure is nearly complete

July 8, 2025

aerial view of old school building site — July 8 - old building site is nearly cleared

Finishing touches in gym — Color is brought into the gym with acoustic tile covering and wall pads

Ceiling grid and patio doors in commons — The ceiling grid is nearly complete in the commons, patio doors have been added

Framing at front entrance — Front entrance framing works around myriad pipes and conduit

Gym hallway sheetrocking — Sheetrocking is underway in the hallway to the gym

Crews suspend guy wires from ceiling — Crew members install guy wires from the ceiling of the reception area to suspend ducts, pipes, lighting, etc.

Construction continues in southeast classroom — Crews continue construction in the southeast classroom wing

July 2, 2025

aerial view of new building construction — July 2 - roofing is completed over the awnings for the entrance and covered play

aerial view of demolished old school building — The old building has been completely torn down; only foundation remains

aerial view of pre-K playground construction — Installation of equipment begins in the pre-K play area

Sorting through pieces of play equipment — A crew member sorts through the pieces of play equipment

framing underway for entrance and gym hallway — Framing is underway for the entrance and gym hallway

underside view of covered play awning — The underside of the covered play awning

large fans installed in the gym ceiling — Large fans have been installed in the gym ceiling

completed library ceiling — The ceiling in the library is completed

ceiling installation in commons/cafeteria — The ceiling grid theme continues in the commons; skylights bring sunshine into the space

installing security measures in doorway — Security measures are being installed in each doorway

June 25-26, 2025: Demolition of Old Building Begins

June 25-26, 2025 - Construction Highlights

aerial view of concrete forms for pre-K play area — Concrete has been laid to form the pre-K play area

installation of awnings at entrance and covered play — The awnings for the front entrance and covered play are constructed

installation of beam for covered play structure — Crew members add a beam to the covered play structure

adding roofing to entrance awning — The following day, the roofing is being cut and installed

acoustic tile pattern templates on gym wall — Crews start adding the pattern templates for the acoustic tiles on the gym walls

reception area construction — Work continues to construct the reception area

finalizing elevator installation — Installation of the elevator is being finalized

ceiling grid installed in family resource center — The ceiling grid is fully installed in the family resource center

ceiling grid installation in library — The same grid is being installed in the library

June 19, 2025 - Construction Progress

May 31, 2025 - Open House

The community said its final goodbyes to the existing Cornelius Elementary School with a celebration and open house on May 31, 2025. Over 100 guests were able to chat with fellow alumni, share their memories of the school, and view yearbooks over the decades. Principal Angella Graves led the final tour of the school, highlighting where additions were made over time and other key historical notes.

The current school was built in 1945. However, it's just one of others built across the decades to educate Cornelius schoolchildren as the community continues to grow from its agricultural roots. Here are some historical photos of those times (credits: Cornelius Public LIbrary, Cornelius Historical Sociaty):

May 28, 2025 - Construction Progress

May 7, 2025 - Construction Progress

March 7, 2025 - FGHS Viking House students visit site