NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas — New Braunfels is among the top 10 fastest growing cities in the country and the city’s school district is working to keep up.
New Braunfels ISD is preparing to name the building that will eventually serve as its second high school.
It’s an expansion years in the making. The district is slowly adding schools to keep up with growth in the city.
NBISD has grown by more than 2,000 students in the last 10 years, with enrollment now hovering just under 10,000 students.
There’s only one high school for the district right now, but a second is on the way.
Over the summer, New Braunfels Middle School will move to a new building off Walnut and Settlers Crossing. The building on Klein Meadow will turn into a 9th grade center. In a few years, it’s slated to become the second high school.
The district is working on a name for the campus.
They’re taking community input on their top five choices through midnight Thursday.
“I think that's cool because it's probably going to be here for 20 plus years and you get to be like, oh, I was the first person who got to go to that school. So that's cool,” said Graysn Unruh.
Currently, she is in 8th grade at New Braunfels Middle School. She’ll be back at the Klein Meadow campus again in the fall, when the building becomes a 9th grade center. She likes the name New Braunfels Legend High School the best.
“We're legends,” said Grasyn. “I think we're one of a kind and we're definitely unique.”
Each option reflects the community or a geographic area. The five choices are:
1) New Braunfels Heritage High School
2) NB Legend High School
3) NB Legend Point High School
4) NB Long Creek High School
5) NB High School East
Omar Lopez says each choice carries a special meaning. He teaches 7th grade social studies and coaches football at New Braunfels Middle School.
“I feel that Heritage is unique because it stands for the cultures that are involved in New Braunfels. We have different variety of community and we're growing. So we have different cultures that we celebrate,” Lopez said. “New Braunfels legend is a pretty good name [too]. There's no other school in the nation [with] our mascot the Unicorns. It's like a legend of its own.”
Lopez also explained Long Creek nods to a trickle of water found behind the campus and Legend Point is also the name of a nearby neighborhood. New Braunfels High School East ties in to the fact that students living east of I-35 would attend the campus.
Lopez, like many other Unicorns, can’t wait to find out which name is selected and other campus details.
“Change can be scary, but I think change can be exciting,” Lopez said.
Grasyn says preparing for a new high school is the latest indication that her community will be ready for the future.
“Just knowing that New Braunfels is growing that much is pretty cool,” Grasyn said.