New Foster School takes shape - Twenty pre-cast concrete panels installed

3/20/2025

The first public school to be built in Evanston in decades started to take shape on Tuesday.

Twenty huge, pre-cast concrete panels that make up almost 200 feet of exterior walls for the new Foster School were lifted by a giant crane off flatbed trucks, placed upright onto the school's foundation and welded into place.

Builders say another 340 panels will be installed here by early April, creating the entire shell of the L-shaped Fifth Ward school.


The first 20 pre-cast concrete panels were installed on Tuesday. They are braced by steel poles. Credit: Richard Cahan

"We've been talking about this for the past few years," said District 65 Superintendent Angel Turner, "and to now actually see it come to life is so exciting for this community. I can just visualize students coming in on the first day of school, the excitement and joy and how this is just going to reinvigorate the community."

Turner arrived with other District 65 officials after 5 p.m. The panels, which were fabricated in a giant warehouse near Milwaukee, were trucked to Evanston and installed earlier in the day. They face Simpson Street between Dewey and Ashland avenues. Each panel is 38 feet tall and either 8 or 10 feet wide. The side that faces the street features decorative brick patterns, which were inlaid into the concrete that was poured into a giant mold.


District 65 Superintendent Angel Turner (in black jacket) takes a first look at the exterior walls of the new Foster School. "For me, this is a special moment," she said. "It brings tears to my eyes." Credit: Richard Cahan

"There's little or zero maintenance on the outside of the facility once it's done," said Benjamin Nelson, project executive with Cordogan, Clark & Associates, the school's architecture firm and construction manager.

The walls are energy efficient, because they form a tight seal and should last 200 years, he said.

Each of the classrooms will have three windows. Most rooms are the same size, except for the kindergarten rooms, which are larger because kindergartners need more space - and more bathrooms - said Kirby Callam, director of special projects.

The school is expected to open during the summer of 2026 and be ready for classes that September.


The exterior walls of the new Foster School seen from across Simpson Street. Credit: Richard Cahan




The walls of the new Foster School dwarf the sign showing its architectural rendering. Credit: Richard Cahan


Text Credit: Richard Cahan