Rodriguez family tours new campus
Arlington ISD’s new Joey Rodriguez Junior High School opens next month on the first day of school, Aug. 13. Funded by the 2019 Bond, the new campus is replacing the 66-year-old Carter Junior High and giving east Arlington junior high students a state-of-the-art facility to learn, grow and thrive in.
“As the first day of school approaches, I cannot help but be grateful to the community and Arlington ISD for voting for the bond in 2019 that made this new building a reality for our staff, students and the community we serve,” said Rodriguez principal Elena Lopez. “It is an indescribable feeling to reflect on the planning phases of this process and to see student, staff and parent input come to life. This is going to be an AMAZING year filled with NEW BEGINNINGS!”
Family of Joey Rodriguez, the school’s namesake, got a sneak peek of the campus recently, and now you can too. Check out recent photos of the building and construction here.
Joey Rodriguez Junior High
The new Rodriguez Junior High is approximately 155,000 square feet and ranges in height from the three-story classroom blocks on the north to a single-story administration office space and a one-and-a-half-floor media center. The new facility is designed to serve about 1,100 students and includes 48 classroom spaces, including CTE classrooms, break-out and collaboration spaces, teacher workrooms and offices. There are performing arts classrooms for band, orchestra, drama, choir and art, along with rooms for special education programs, science labs and a storm shelter. Outdoor spaces include a new entry plaza and canopy, a regulation synthetic turf football/soccer field with a four-lane track, bleachers, press box, concessions and restrooms.
The school’s namesake was a much-loved teacher and soccer coach at Sam Houston High School who died in 2021 after a battle with COVID-19, leaving a trail of heartbreak statewide but a legacy larger than his life.
“Joey had a lot of love,” said Joey’s mother, Susie Rodriguez.
It’s that love that now serves as the foundation for the future school almost ready to start welcoming students.