DougCo leaders have high hopes for incoming Legacy Campus providing technical education

The Douglas County School District is preparing to open its brand new career and technical education campus this fall.  

Renovations of the Legacy Campus are about halfway done. The building is the former Wildlife Experience building in Parker near Peoria and Lincoln Avenue.  

"This is a 176,000 square-foot facility and well over half of the building is turning into state-of-the-art classroom spaces for all of our industry programs," said Dr. Rex Corr, Legacy Campus director.  

The district purchased the building from CU in 2021 with money from a bond approved by voters in 2018. The building will open in August for students interested in nine different career pathways.  

Some like EMS/EMT are already available in other schools, but with wait lists. Other pathways include robotics, architecture, hospitality and culinary arts, and aviation.  

"We're not pulling in any of the programming from our neighborhood existing schools. We are building additional pathways to really connect student passion to pathway," Corr said. "We have a breadth of programming we're bringing on board." 

According to Corr, the curriculum was designed by local universities. College credit and industry certificates will be offered to students in each pathway.  

"These students need to be best prepared," Corr said. "They need that competitive advantage when they enter into a job interview and by providing most relevant skillset, I think it sets them up for success."  

Jim Friedrich was among several people who took a tour Friday. As an administrator at Ascent Classical Academy, a nearby charter school, he believes the Legacy Campus will be a great option for many teens.  

"We're really excited about it," Friedrich said. "There's a shortage of this kind of thing in the world in general." 

Each student will still attend their home school but come to Legacy Campus for a few periods twice a week. 

In the fall, the campus is prepared to welcome between 350 and 500 students, but administrators are planning for a much larger enrollment in the future.  

Corr hopes the legacy of the campus Is showing teens there are many pathways to success.  

"I think the sky is the limit for Legacy Campus," he said. "I think this is the right programming to provide for students." 

Registration for classes at the Legacy Campus is open right now. 

Students who are interested should talk with the counselor at their home school.