FARGO — Students at a private Christian school in Fargo are getting an earlier start to summer vacation this year to clear the way for construction. On Tuesday, May 21, Grace Lutheran School broke ground for $2.7 million worth of capital improvements to its facility at 1025 14th Ave.
S. It was also the last day of the academic year for students. “We shaved it a little short because we have to gut some classrooms,” Principal Susan Jahnke said.
Construction begins in earnest next week. Amy Hirsch, office and marketing manager, said the school recently crossed the $2 million mark of its Growing Together in Grace campaign and has $700,000 left to raise. Grace Lutheran is one of a handful of private schools in the F-M metro taking on major construction, expansion or renovation projects this summer.
A capital campaign secured $52 million in gifts and pledges for Capstone Classical Academy, the newest private school in the area. Capstone has operated in two separate, temporary locations since August 2022, and is expected to move into its new, sprawling campus early next year. Oak Grove Lutheran School is undergoing expansion and renovation at a cost of around $30 million, funded through its Acorns to Oaks campaign.
High school students there have had to attend classes across the river at Concordia College in Moorhead during the month of May so that asbestos abatement could begin on Oak Grove’s north campus. And in Moorhead, Park Christian School wrapped up a $9 million proje.
