St. Thomas Extra to construct expansive athletic middle propelled by Our Woman of Lourdes donation | Schooling
St. Thomas More Catholic High School is publicly launching the third phase of the school’s master plan – a 22,000 square foot sports center and other sport-oriented site improvements – following a donation from the Regional Medical Center of Our Lady of Lourdes and the Lourdes-Affiliated Medical Center Professionals.
The Cougar Athletic Center of Notre-Dame de Lourdes, where the school is planning the groundbreaking next summer, will have a 6,000-square-foot weight room, 2,600-square-foot activity room, locker rooms, changing rooms, exercise room, storage and equipment room, coaching offices and showers for all outdoor sports teams.
The center will be on the practice field between the school and the Cougar Stadium, according to a school statement.
The President of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, E. Joseph Savoie, thanked the donors on Friday who provided the institution with the first US $ 3.
Anne Pitre, director of the St. Thomas More grant, said the project will also include renovations to the school’s existing track and field area, expanding locker rooms, weight room and meeting rooms for indoor spaces such as volleyball and basketball and physical education classes, and the addition of School locker rooms span the school’s various fields to serve the baseball, softball, soccer, and lacrosse teams more efficiently.
New visitor concessions and toilets will also be added at the Cougar Stadium, according to a press release.
The project is about 50% funded, with a fundraising goal of $ 8 million, and Pitre said the school hopes to achieve its goal by the end of the school year.
The overhaul will allow students to meet their training needs without leaving campus and provide enough space for any sport to practice and play.
St. Thomas More has a strong track record in multiple sports and the new facilities will reflect the dedication of students on their teams, Pitre said.
“Athletics teaches our students leadership,” she said. “It teaches you determination. It teaches them commitment. It teaches them teamwork. What athletics does for these students is teach them life skills, lifelong skills that will take away forever. “
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The funding director said the school is working with St. Thomas More’s parent, Glenn Angelle of Angelle Architects, on the design and planning. Pitre said they are working to make the most of every square meter as construction costs rise in connection with COVID-19-related inflation. As soon as the circuit diagrams are nailed down, the project is put out to tender.
The athletics center is the third project in the school’s current capital campaign, called Envision More, which follows a new chapel, expected to open in December, and an academic building with 10 classrooms and four special education classrooms.
Pitre said the final phase of the current capital plan will be a creative arts and community center. Schools stakeholders hope the plan will place campus and students in a strong position for growth in both academic and extra-curricular sectors in the years to come, she said.
“If you don’t make a strategic plan and don’t have a vision, you will never grow,” said the head of development. “You will stagnate and so will your children.”
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Achieving these goals is “impossible” without partners like Lourdes and other donors, Pitre said.
Elisabeth Arnold, Vice President of Market Strategy at Lourdes, said the gift was “developing a long-term partnership”.
The high school and hospital system, both Catholic institutions, have worked together in the past to raise donations for the St. Bernadette Clinic in Lourdes, career orientation days, student business trips to support the elderly and pandemic hospital stays, and health care for athletes in the school’s programs, she said.
While the donation amount was not disclosed by either party, Arnold said it was a multi-year gift.
“On behalf of Notre Dame de Lourdes and our medical alumni donors, we are proud to be part of this powerful contribution to the Envision More campaign in support of a spiritual academic environment, the development of community leaders and future generations of students at St. to be . Thomas More Catholic High School, “Lourdes Acadiana Market President Kathleen Healy-Collier said in a statement.
