by Scott Crump
(Third in a series)
In this third article in the Bingham High School Fifty Years Ago series, I will the discuss some of the happenings at Bingham High in South Jordan during its first school year in 1975-1976.
OPENING THE NEW BINGHAM HIGH IN SOUTH JORDAN
When the new Bingham High opened its doors on September 2, 1975, with 1,246 students, construction was far from complete. Carpet had to be laid; ceiling tile, the auditorium’s seats, and lights had to be installed; the heating and air conditioning equipment was far from being finished; and wiring, painting, and other inside work had to be completed. Regular school work was delayed a week so contractors could sufficiently clean up the building for students to attend classes. For the year’s first assembly, everybody (one class at a time) had to sit on the cafeteria floor. Principal Owen welcomed the students to Bingham High School. While he was talking to the seniors about the difficulties they faced, he noticed out of the corner of his eye a construction worker on a ladder installing ceiling tiles. As he continued his speech, the worker slowly crossed in front of him as though he were not even there, placing each tile in a straight line across the cafeteria. Dr. Owen kept contact with the students the best he could, later commenting that the only thing one could do in a situation like that was laugh. (235)
The September 2, 1975 edition of the Deseret News outlined the first week in the new school:
At Bingham—a “new” building but an “old” school – only seniors reported today. Juniors will report Wednesday and sophomores on Thursday. On Friday students will sign up for clubs and extracurricular programs. Full scale class work will begin on Monday said Dr. Thomas Owen, principal.
Today students gathered in an unfinished cafeteria and sat on carpet while Owen introduced faculty members.
“Everything’s super, we have a great bunch of kids. They’ve never refused to do what we ask them,” said Owen.
Schedules will be short this week, with students in the building from 8:00 am to 11:30 am.
Although the building was cluttered with construction work and unplaced furniture today, Abel Paulsen of Finn Paulsen Co., general contractor, said it will be “cleaned up” by Monday. (236)
For the first few weeks, all P.E. Classes had to be held outside because the floor in the gymnasium was still being laid, and students had to bring their own lunches to school because the kitchen facilities in the cafeteria were still being finished. At the first assembly in the auditorium (a rock concert), the student body sat on boxes or carpet rolls and had to fight the dirt and dust of the continuing construction. The year’s first football game was played at the Copperton Stadium under the lights for the last time. Bingham’s gridders won that game against Brighton7-0. On the afternoon of September 19, 1975, the first game at the new high school was held, which Bingham also won, defeating Jordan34-12. School was rather hectic the whole first year. Construction crews worked around students, and faculty members tried to make the best out of a difficult situation. One teacher at the high school that first year remarked that she got to know the workmen better than some of the faculty members because they were around so much. (237)
Going to the new school required students to make numerous adjustments. Not only did classrooms no longer have walls, but carpet replaced tile and wood on all floors. Tammy Crump Rindlisbacher (Class of 1976) recalled looking across the open second floor balcony and seeing people with gummed-soled shoes, not used to walking on carpet, tripping all over the place. She missed the night football games, the loud intense atmosphere of basketball games in the old gymnasium, and the intimate historic feeling of the old building. (238)
However, students soon got used to their spacious new building with its many open spaces and found ways to enjoy their new surroundings. A favorite place to hang out was on the second-floor balcony by the banks of lockers on the east or west side of the building. From this vantage point one could see the entire library below, as well as all the people traversing the second-floor hallways. It was not only interesting to just watch people from here, but students could play a game called “Money Maze” (named after a popular T.V. game show in the 1970s). One could guide another through the maze created by the library bookshelves by shouting out to someone below in the library “left, right, left.” (239) One daring young man decided to take advantage of the spacious main hallway by converting it into a motorcycle racetrack. His friends made a bet, contending that he could not race his motorcycle down the length of the hall without getting caught. Taking on the wager, he revved up his engine on the south side of the hall and took off toward the distant doors on the north. His plans went awry when he got going so fast that he lost the nerve to continue out the north doors without stopping. Slamming on his breaks as he approached the exit, he left a 25-foot skid mark on the carpet. Although he managed to get out of the building by pushing his motorcycle out the door, he soon found himself in school administrative custody. Luckily no one was hurt, and carpet layers, still working in the building, could patch the damaged floor. (240)
Finally, by spring, almost everything was finished. Boxes of books, supplies, and construction materials had been gradually cleared from the halls, and on April 29, 1976, the building was dedicated. At this time the following description was given of the new Bingham High:
One of the largest educational buildings in the state, the new Bingham High School is a compact structure designed to meet present and future needs of the Jordan School District. Sited on 40 acres, the new school was designed by Scott, Louie and Browning, Architects and Engineers, at a cost of nearly $11,000,000. Over four years in construction, the building provides a high degree of convertibility within a core, yet with a potential for maximum subject interrelationship. Each teaching area has the flexibility for space to be utilized for individual study, small group discussions, conventional classrooms or large lecture groups. With a capacity for 2,400 students, the school has 90 teaching stations grouped into eight principal areas: (1) Instructional Materials Center (located in the middle of the building), (2) Language Arts Center, (3) Social Studies – Business Center, (4) Mathematics, Science and Industrial Arts Center, (5) Applied and Fine Arts Center, (6) P.E. Center, (7) Student Activity Center, (8) Administration Center.
The Auditorium will seat 1,496 and is fully equipped for stage productions with sound rooms, projection equipment, and theater lighting. The P.E. area includes a field house, which contains three college-sized basketball courts, a one-tenth mile four lane track and seats 3,200 spectators. The playing floor is of a new synthetic polyurethane material that allows many uses on the surface without excessive maintenance or damage. With the possibility of future decline in the availability of conventional fuels, the school utilizes electricity for heating and cooling. The entire plant is air conditioned in the event the school should, in the future, be used all year around. (241)
The new school’s dedication ceremony focused on hundreds of old photographs and memorabilia from the other Bingham High Schools which were located in the halls and media center and featured a slide presentation that told the history of Bingham High. The Bingham High Madrigals presented a musical selection followed by remarks from John Wheadon, a board member, Walter Scott, the architect, and Finn Paulsen, the contractor. The Dance and Speech Departments presented a special dance-dialog entitled “Memories.” Theron Hutchings, President of the South Jordan Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, offered the dedicatory prayer, after which tours of the building were conducted and refreshments served. At the time Principal Owen remarked:
We are stressing the history of the school at this dedication to preserve the traditions of the school and to let the people and students know that although we are at a new location, we are still the Bingham Miners. (242)