It was the subject of National news: the second blizzard to hit the Washington area dumped so much snow so quickly that a portion of St. John School in Hollywood, Maryland collapsed. Helicopter images from above showed how severe the damage was to the 1953 section of the school– that building had to be taken down.
 
That was last February. Now just eleven months later, the school is set to reopen. The collapsed building has now been rebuilt from the ground up. Another section, dating back to 1924, has undergone a complete renovation. The new school is ready to open to students when they return from their Christmas break in January.
 

8th Grader, John Winslow said about not being able to attend St. John’s School, “It was kind of sad when it fell down. I am glad to have a new one.” When asked how he felt being bused to a different school after the cave-in, John said, “I knew every day we were closer to getting a new school.” John and other students are spending part of their Christmas vacation to help teachers, staff and volunteers get ready for school on Jan. 3, 2011.

On Wednesday, Dec. 29 starting at 10 a.m., teachers, staff and volunteers arrived and began the process of unpacking and setting up classrooms to prepare for the students who will return home on Monday, Jan. 3, 2011 at 7:50 a.m. for their first day of class at St. John’s School since the roof collapse last winter.

On Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011 at 11:30 a.m., Cardinal Donald Wuerl will Celebrate Mass and Bless the New School.

Rather than refer to this as a rebuilding, parents, teachers and staff are calling this a rebirth. They are giving up most of their Christmas break to have the classrooms set up and organized when the children return. The theme for the move in day is ‘Santa has left some packages for you.’ At the all hands on deck event, teachers, staff and volunteers helped unload boxes, moved in desks, hung posters and pictures on the walls, set up bulletin boards and helped teachers settle in.

Volunteers from the Knights of Columbus drove pickup trucks to a storage facility where most of the books, salvaged from the library, have been stored. The books were trucked to the school where they were sorted and organized, before being placed in the new library.
 
The energy-efficient redesign and modernization of St. John School included input from teachers and staff. The new classrooms have been resized to make them more conducive to learning. All classrooms now have smart boards, internet wiring, and more natural light. The two-story building will include 12 instructional areas, a science lab, a library media center, an art room, and a music room. With the new updates, the school is now able to launch a STEM program (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics program).
 
The grounds have been graded, so the lower level classes can have full size windows and an egress.  The upstairs classes also have full size windows and direct egress. The center of the building has windows within the raised roof to provide natural light into the atrium. Insurance and pledges covered the replacement cost of rebuilding St. John School, meeting all current building codes.
 
St. John School’s students range from kindergarten to eighth grade. Since the collapse, the students have been attending classes in the former Holy Angels-Sacred Heart School in Avenue, Maryland. St. John’s Parish is over 30