St. Louis Catholic High School students have been learning from temporary buildings since Hurricane Laura. On Jan. 12, the Diocese of Lake Charles broke ground on the school’s new home.

The Rev. Whitney Miller, who serves as the school’s counselor, spoke to the Kiwanis Club of Calcasieu on Thursday about progress on the new campus and the “Spreading Roots, Growing Saints” Capital Campaign.

The new location is more than a replacement. It is an expansion. There is a total of $53 million in construction planned.

The property for the new campus — a 42-acre lot on the corner of E. McNeese St. and Corbina Road — was purchased at the end of 2022, but the project got moving last year with a $32.2 million obligation from FEMA.

The FEMA obligation can only be used to replace pre-existing school facilities. The $32 million will be used to construct a two-story main academic building (with a library), pavilion, practice field and a soccer field.

Construction for the initial phase will take two years, Miller said. Students will start their spring 2027 semester at the new campus.

To cover the remaining $20 million, St. Louis Catholic launched the “Spreading Roots, Growing Saints” campaign. St. Louis Catholic was created by the consolidation of St. Charles Academy, Landry High and Sacred Heart High in 1970. The name was inspired by the school’s history of bringing different walks of life together and growing in unity, he said.

“Those deep roots that we all share now are branching out into our new campus.”

So far, $5.5 million has been pledged and $1.5 million has been donated.

Three more construction phases are planned. The next phase, the St. Thomas Aquinas Goal of $25 million, will include a visual and media arts building, auditorium, gymnasium, athletic field house and science and dining building. Miller said enough money has already been raised through the capital campaign to begin construction on the science and dining building.

Athletic facilities are included in the St. Peter Claver goal. With $17 million, the school will build a football-track and field stadium, baseball stadium, softball stadium, tennis facility and auxiliary buildings.

The final campaign goal is to raise $6 million for the St. Louis, King of France Chapel. The chapel will serve as a gathering space for students and staff and will be built to hold 800.

Those interested in contributing to the campaign can visit slchs.org.