Hufford students in Joliet leave their mark on piece of future school

Joliet — Sixth grade students at Joliet’s Hufford Junior High School were given the chance to leave a permanent mark on the school building they’ll be graduating from in two years.

On Dec. 13, 368 sixth graders were allowed to sign a steel support beam which will be used in the construction of the new Hufford building.

Joliet Public Schools District 86 broke ground on new buildings for Hufford, 1125 N. Larkin Ave., and Gompers, 1501 Copperfield Ave., junior high schools in October, and the current sixth graders are expected to be the first students to graduate from the new buildings as eighth graders in 2027.

The steel beam the students were presented with measures 21 feet long and weighs about 1,000 pounds. It will soon be installed in the new construction in the portion of the building that is going to house the school’s offices.

Both Hufford and Gompers were originally built in the 1950s and are in need of updated facilities and expanded space to accommodate future students.

According to District 86 Director of Communications and Development Sandy Zalewski, sixth grade students at Gompers will get a similar opportunity to leave a memento on a beam in January, after the holiday break.