Hayden Canyon Charter has nearly doubled its size with the addition of a new cafetorium, eight new classes, a music room and a combination library and makerspace.

“The kids are super excited about the new space,” said Bridgette Dahlstrom, registrar and lottery clerk for HCC. “They were very excited when the cafetorium opened, and for the opportunity to get out of their class space for a little while.”

Before the construction project was completed, students ate lunch in their classrooms with their teachers. But when the building addition opened to students last month, they were allowed to break from their classrooms.

The new addition also expands the campus to allow the middle school students to have their own wing, and will increase capacity at the school by over 100 new first or second grader students for fall 2023.

“Things are pretty exciting around here right now,” said Bill Rutherford, principal and operational director.

Before the expansion music classes were held in a standard classroom, but the new room accommodates better acoustics and band style seating to improve the learning environment.

Hayden Canyon Charter is a hands-on style learning environment so having more space allows teaching staff access to better tools and more flexibility.

A new makerspace will provide students an additional lab, where they can build projects, crafts or art with tools like 3D and laser printers.

“There are some things in the works for the makerspace,” Dahlstrom said.

Hayden Canyon Charter has seen greater demand from parents than it can meet since opening its doors in 2020, Dahlstrom said.

The expansion has been planned since the school opened, and now the construction is ahead of schedule.

“We’ve seen a lot of people that are looking for alternate education, especially through hands-on project based learning,” Dahlstrom said.

The school capacity has increased to nearly 600 with the new classrooms, and parents enter a lottery to get their students into HCC. Applications will be accepted until March 3 for the Fall 2023 school year, with the official selection March 6.

To celebrate the new wing and introduce the space to the community, Hayden Canyon is having a week of celebrations open to the public. Monday, they hosted a community open house.

Today, students are having a day of kindness where instead of celebrating Valentine's day, each class takes on a community service project to give back to the community.

The Hayden Chamber of Commerce will conduct a formal ribbon cutting ceremony at 5 p.m. Thursday, followed at 6 p.m. by a Bigfoot Bash Bonfire and Night Hike. Attendees will toast s’mores over bonfires and Charter staff will lead guided night hikes through the forest and tours through the campus. Over 350 people are expected to show up, and food trucks will be on site. The bash is open to anyone and attendees will get free hot cocoa.

Flashlights are encouraged for the guided hikes.