Austin, McGill Elementary Students & Staff Sign Historic Last Beam

SAN ANGELO, TX - Students and staff at Austin and McGill Elementary celebrated a milestone in the construction of McGill Elementary’s new addition.

The school district held a beam signing followed by a "Topping Out" ceremony for the placement of the last steel beam earlier this month. 

“The beam-signing event created a sense of unity and excitement for the upcoming merger with McGill,” said April Johnson, Austin Elementary Principal. “Austin staff and students had the chance to contribute to the building process and make their mark on the new space. As we navigate through the mixed emotions that change often brings, we look ahead to the new chapter that awaits us all, finding comfort in the possibilities it holds.”

McGill Elementary Principal Colton Curtis said the students at McGill have enjoyed watching the evolution of the new construction on their campus, which broke ground in September 2023.

“The beam signing was an experience they will remember forever,” Mr. Curtis said. “They were ecstatic for the opportunity to sign the last beam and witness it being put in place live. Our students will forever be a part of our new build.”

The signing of the last beam began with Lee Lewis Construction, Inc, the company overseeing construction at McGill Elementary, choosing a single 12-foot beam and designating it as the last beam to be placed in McGill’s new construction.

“We thought it was a great opportunity for the kids from both schools to merge their school spirits by signing the beam,” said Michael McGuffin, Vice President of Construction for Lee Lewis Construction, Inc. “It gives the kids a common unity in that their names are combined and included in the new building that will bring them together.”

The construction team painted over the beam’s red-oxide finish with white paint and delivered the steel beam to Austin Elementary. There, all of the students and faculty signed the white beam with permanent markers in an array of bright colors.

A few days later, Lee Lewis transported the beam back to McGill Elementary, where the students and staff there signed the beam on the reverse side. In less than a week, more than 500 students and staff filled the beam with messages, signatures, hearts, stars, smiley faces, dinosaurs, and other animals.

Messages from students included: 

“Once a bulldog, always a bulldog”
“Once a Mustang, always a Mustang”
“Be Kind”
“I can’t wait to be at your school”
“I love school”
“Hard work pays off”

Messages from teachers and staff included: 

“Blessed by the best! Always a BULLSTANG”
“I will always love my bulldogs”
“Bulldogs becoming Mustangs”
“Bulldogs, this is going to be great! Be positive!”
“Be proud. Go Bulldogs!”
“Onward and Upward!”

“Several of our staff members have been at McGill for their entire career,” said Mr. Curtis. “These staff members relished the opportunity and are excited for what the future holds.”

The week after the students and staff at both Austin and McGill Elementary signed the beam, a Topping Out ceremony was held at McGill Elementary.

According to the school, the Topping Out ceremony is a "time-honored builder’s rite, traditionally held to celebrate a milestone in the progress of a building project, such as when a final structural beam is raised into place to complete a building’s framing."

Before the Topping Out ceremony, Lee Lewis Construction placed the signed beam on top of two sawhorses and attached the beam to a crane with straps.

Teachers and students at McGill gathered outside the school, in a safe area designated by the construction company, while teachers at Austin Elementary logged onto a video call so their students could watch the ceremony from their classroom.

Two construction workers, waiting on raised scissor lifts, were ready to guide the steel beam into place once lifted. 

The students and teachers counted down – “Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one!”

As the crane lifted the beam from the sawhorses, the crowd cheered and watched as the two men on the scissor lift guided the beam and secured it into place. The students and staff of Austin Elementary and McGill Elementary had now left their permanent mark on McGill’s new building. After removing the straps from the beam, one of the men put a young evergreen tree on top of the beam, concluding the ceremony.

“For us, it is an opportunity to continue a tradition long standing among builders and also a chance to reflect on all of the hard work known and unknown to bring a project to this point,” said Mr. McGuffin. “Everyone from workers on the site to architect and engineers designing to community members and faculty sacrificing time and energy to visualize and enact the project, hundreds of people have taken an idea and worked together to make real the dream of the project. The Topping Out ceremony celebrates and recognizes all that effort and passion.”

Construction Updates at McGill Elementary as of February 20, 2024 Include:

• All structural steel has been erected
• Masonry walls in the kitchen area are complete
• Some of the roof metal deck has been installed
• Much of the metal stud framing has been installed both the exterior and interior
• The ductwork is getting ready to be hung
• Roofing material is stored on-site
• Site observation reports are being generated and transmitted to the owner/contractor

“We are honored to be involved with a project that will benefit kids and the community in multiple ways,” said Mr. McGuffin. “As part of the community ourselves, we have workers who are tied to both Austin and McGill whether by attending as students or having our own kids and grandkids attend. We appreciate the hard work done to make this project happen and are proud to be a part of the process and our community.”

As part of San Angelo ISD’s Sustainability Plan, McGill Elementary and Austin Elementary will combine, with students and staff from both elementaries being housed at McGill Elementary, including the new facility, beginning in the 2024-2025 school year. 

McGill Elementary’s 34,558-square-feet addition will include: 15 classrooms; a teacher work room; new student and staff restrooms; a new entry to the campus; a new cafeteria; a new pick-up/drop-off drive; and new, drought-resistant landscaping.

Currently, McGill Elementary has a total of approximately 240 students, with approximately 270 students at Austin Elementary. Combining schools into a larger campus of 500 to 600 students is an optimum size for instructional benefit and operational efficiency. By combining Austin Elementary and McGill Elementary into one campus, SAISD is able to:

• Provide students with more resources and improve educational environments and provide more support staff 
• Maintain smaller student learning environments within a larger campus
• Expand professional learning groups for teachers to mentor and collaborate with peers
• Operation cost per student can be reduced by up to $2,000 per student
• Balance student enrollment for more efficient use of school spaces
• Economic efficiency

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