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Capital Projects
The capital projects included in the Make A Difference Campaign have been so generously supported by the Saint James School community, and we thank each and every one of you for your contributions.
Capital projects:
- Pohanka Fine Arts Center ($7 million)
- Rocca & Young Faculty Townhouses ($0.5 million)
- Turner Athletic Center ($12 million)
- Dunnan Hall - New Boys' Dormitory ($4 million)
- Cotton Building Renovations - includes theater, dance studio, and Fab Lab ($1 million)
In This Section
- Pohanka Fine Arts Center
- Turner Athletic Center
- Dunnan Hall - Boys' Dormitory
- Cotton Renovations
- Faculty Housing
Pohanka Fine Arts Center
Pohanka
Fine Arts Center
The first capital project to be completed as part of the Make A Difference Campaign, the Pohanka Fine Arts Center provides state-of-the-art facilities for our Music and Visual Arts programs, allowing our students and faculty to grow and develop in new and exciting ways. An architectural work of art located near the Bai Yuka, this beautiful three-story, 22,000 square-foot building makes a statement that Saint James prioritizes the arts.
Because of the excitement and energy of the new building, the Pohanka Fine Arts Center has become a gathering place for all our students, regardless of their affiliation with the fine arts program. This organic exposure will further embed the arts into the fabric of the students’ experience.
RAISED FOR THE POHANKA FINE ARTS CENTER:
- $7.4M Goal: $7M
“Now that we have officially opened the Pohanka Fine Arts Center I have a new appreciation of “space.” We now have the space to create, the space to store, and the space to expand.”Jeremy McDonald, Visual Arts Faculty
Highlights of the Pohanka Fine Arts Center
A beautiful 80-seat performance space
Dedicated studios for 2D, 3D, and digital art
The music program now has triple the number of teaching spaces
A work of art that ties different style elements together
A beautiful welcome to the Pohanka Fine Arts Center
A formal space to display artwork
Students can relax or study with a gorgeous view of the Bai Yuka
Turner Athletic Center
Turner
Athletic Center
Daily athletics are central to the Saint James experience for all 250+ students on campus. Whether a student is a starter for one of our MAC Championship teams, a future college athlete refining his or her skills, or a second or third form student trying out a sport for the very first time, the Turner Athletic Center represents an exciting step up for every Saint.
Construction is now complete on the new facility, which is an addition to and renovation of the existing field house, Alumni Hall. The new locker rooms, indoor turf field, performance gymnasium, wrestling center, fitness center, and other amenities offered by the Turner Athletic Center help all of our student-athletes and faculty coaches reach the next level in their athletic development!
Turner Athletic Center Highlights
The Stockton Smith Fieldhouse is a thrilling new addition to campus at Saint James School and the only one of its kind in the surrounding area. This 65-yard indoor turf field provides year-round training opportunities for our field athletes, reduces the number of practices lost to adverse weather, and provides an additional place for students to exercise and practice over the weekends and during free time.
Stockton Smith, past parent and former trustee, was a supporter of this project before his passing in 2018. His sons, William ’10 and Alex ‘06, and the Thornedge Foundation continued his generosity, and the field is named in Stockton’s memory.
The Barr Gymnasium is the basketball/volleyball performance gymnasium named in memory of Dave and Betty Barr by Mayo Boddie ’49, Geoffrey Pohanka ’76 and Anne Kline Pohanka, Jim and Karen Beardsley, and Father Dunnan.
This beautiful new space features gleaming wood floors, expandable bleachers on both sides of the court, and two professional, hydraulic portable basketball hoops.
Named in honor of Admiral James L. Holloway ‘39, who was a star wrestler as a cadet at the Naval Academy, this wrestling center provides a dedicated space for SJS to showcase one of its strongest athletic programs.
Bell Gymnasium, the new JV/practice court for volleyball and basketball, is named in memory of Arthur Bell, Jr. ’49 by his wife, Florence Bell. Located in what would have been the middle court in Alumni Hall, having this extra court gives our younger teams their own dedicated space to practice and host games.
Beautiful new girls' and boys' locker rooms have replaced those in use for many years. The lockers are custom-built and include storage space below the seat for clothes or equipment as well as a locked cubby for each student-athlete. Past parent and current trustee Michael Topham designed, built, and gave the new lockers.
New bathroom/shower facilities complement these enhancements, ensuring that the locker rooms meet the highest standards of comfort.
The Davis Café is a large and modern concessions area that features a fully-equipped kitchen. This space will be used as a student center on the weekends.
Located through the back of the Turner Athletic Center, the Obrecht-Mitchell Terrace provides an outdoor space with beautiful views of the surrounding fields.
The Root Weight Room, named in appreciation of recently retired football coach John Root, has a wide selection of professional-grade weight-training equipment. A separate fitness room with treadmills, elliptical machines, and exercise bikes is also available.
Three new locker rooms for visiting teams with individual shower stalls and bathrooms are an inviting upgrade for our guests.
The athletic training center is a large space that features multiple training tables and two whirlpools to keep our student-athletes healthy and performing their best.
The new uniform and laundry room features a mobile storage system that saves space, streamlines processes, and keeps uniforms and gear organized.
This aerial photo shows the Turner Athletic Center, with the newly-constructed Barr Gymnasium and Stockton Smith Field House on the right and the renovated Alumni Hall on the left.
RAISED FOR THE TURNER ATHLETIC CENTER:
- $11.7M Goal: $12M
“As a family, we feel it is important that Saint James be more than a private boarding school and that there are opportunities for sharing in the community whether it be through Chapel, the Pohanka Fine Arts Center, or the Turner Athletic Center. ”Toni Turner, Past Parent (Parker '02 & Garrett '04)
Highlights of the Turner Athletic Center
A one-of-a-kind indoor training facility
A new gymnasium for the Saints with increased seating
A new facility to showcase one of our strongest athletic programs
New locker rooms for the Saints and visiting teams
View of the back of the Turner Athletic Center
A redesigned entrance will make the facility accessible to all
A beautiful lobby area will greet our guests
Dunnan Hall - Boys' Dormitory
Dunnan Hall
Boys' Dormitory
Plans are underway to build a new boys’ dormitory across College Road, next to Old Orchard House. The lead donors to the project have requested the dorm be named Dunnan Hall in honor of Father Dunnan’s 30 years of service to the School. The dorm will include 34 beds, two faculty apartments, one faculty townhome, quarantine space, common rooms, and laundry facilities.
A new dormitory is needed due to a sustained growth in the number of applicants and students interested in boarding. Construction of a new dormitory will also allow the School to achieve its enrollment goal of 80% boarding students.
With Dunnan Hall, the School will be able to lower the occupancy rate in Claggett Hall which will improve the quality of life in that dorm. We will also gain much needed housing for three male teachers with two apartments and one townhouse with outside entrances.
We hope to have construction completed in time for the 2026-2027 school year.
Cotton Renovations
Cotton Buildling
Renovations
With the successful opening of the Pohanka Fine Arts Center, the Bowman-Byron Center, in the Cotton Building, has become the primary home of the Saint James Mummers’ Society and the Dance Program. Several exciting projects have been identified to make it a thriving center for dance and theater for years to come. In addition, a new Fab Lab will be constructed on the bottom level where the locker rooms were previously located.
RAISED FOR THE COTTON BUILDING:
- $1.1M Goal: $1M
Dance Studio
A new, larger dance studio with lots of natural light was built on the second floor in place of the old art studio.
Stage Improvements
Kellam Auditorium received a complete overhaul, including new stage curtains, a catwalk to improve downstage lighting, and a new LED theatrical lighting system.
AV Equipment
Fully digital audio and visual equipment has been installed making Kellam Auditorium compatible with the technological demands of 21st Century theater.
Fab Lab: A Central Hub for Technology & Innovation
The Fab Lab has become a hub of activity and is used for both classroom instruction and extra-curricular enrichment. Currently located in a classroom in Powell/Fulton, Saint James students utilize the Fab Lab in the Design & Engineering class, Robotics Club, and for special projects, such as building sets for the theater department.
The Fab Lab requires additional space and equipment to reach its full potential. The current space has its challenges, including not enough space for materials or ongoing projects and machines that create loud noise which limits when they can be used without disturbing adjacent classrooms.
Improvements and opportunities with a new Fab Lab include having a central work environment to enable students to work without disruption, multiple project rooms to provide a safe space for ongoing projects, and better ventilation and general safety.
Another opportunity for a larger SJS Fab Lab is to integrate it across the curriculum so that it is a multimedia resource used by the entire school, not just the science department.
“We are delighted to support, both financially and otherwise, Saint James' decision to move forward with the Fab Lab, making the School a leader at embracing new teaching opportunities and experiences quite often only available at the collegiate level.”Roland & Dona Young (parents of Taylor '09)
Faculty Housing
Rocca & Young
Faculty TownhousesThanks to generous donations from Roland and Dona Young (parents of Taylor ‘09) and Mr. and Mrs. Leo J. Rocca, Jr. (grandparents of Thomas E. Rocca ‘13), Saint James has been able to build two faculty townhomes. This housing allows the School to recruit and, far more importantly, retain talented faculty who wish to teach our wonderful students and build families of their own while living on campus.
Garages for each townhome have also been constructed, giving these families extra space for cars or storage.
RAISED TO DATE THE FACULTY TOWNHOMES:
- $0.6M Goal: $0.5M