BUFFALO TWP — Students and parents will get their first look tonight at the new Freeport Middle School.

Sixth graders have an open house tonight, seventh graders will have a tour on Wednesday, and eighth graders will see it on Thursday.

The first day of school in the Freeport School District is next Tuesday.

Construction workers today were putting finishing touches to the gym floor and auditorium at the school while teachers have started decorating their classrooms.

The school, which is next to Freeport High School, was built over the past 14 months for $30 million.

Clint Crowell, an eighth grade social studies teacher, began his teaching career a decade ago at the recently closed Freeport Junior High School. While he is always nostalgic for his first teaching experiences, he's excited about a fresh start in this new building.

“There's part of this like you're beginning teaching again,” Crowell said. “It couldn't feel more different in terms of being in here,” standing in his brighter, much larger classroom.

The junior high school in downtown Freeport is more than 100 years old. That building and the school district's kindergarten center were sold to an Armstrong County developer to repurpose into medical office, day care and office space.