By Miles Layton and Nicole Bowman-Layton

EDENTON — Before visitors ever reached the front doors of John A. Holmes High School Friday evening (July 24, 2026), they knew something special was happening.

Cars filled the parking lots as families, alumni, former teachers and curious residents streamed toward the Performing Arts entrance, near Park Avenue. Some arrived with children who will begin classes there next month. Others had graduated decades earlier from the school that once stood on the same site. Many simply wanted to see the building they had watched rise from steel beams into one of the largest public investments in education in Chowan County history.

Inside, teachers welcomed guests into classrooms, students from various organizations helped guide people down hallways, and families wandered through hallways in a self-guided tour that only months ago were still active construction zones.

Some visitors quietly studied historic photographs displayed on digital screens. Others paused in the Academic and Athletic Hall of Fame to admire trophies, championship memorabilia and the familiar blue “E” salvaged from center court of the former Holmes gymnasium.

For the first time since students moved into the new campus in January, the completed John A. Holmes High School truly belonged to the community.

Residents who missed Friday’s event will have one more opportunity to tour the campus during a community open house Saturday (June 25, 2026) from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.

More than a new building

Although students officially began classes in the new school on Jan. 26, the campus continued evolving throughout the spring and summer as contractors completed remaining site work and interior details.

For Superintendent Tammi Ward, Friday’s open house represented the completion of a journey that began long before she assumed leadership of Edenton-Chowan Public Schools.

“It’s been great to come in as superintendent for the conclusion of this building project,” Ward said. “It’s so amazing to see the ‘aha’ moments on our students and staff and county government — that it’s finished and what it’s is going to mean for our students and for their futures to become globally ready graduates.”

Ward said that while students have called the building home for six months, it has only recently begun to feel complete.

“In the last couple of months, it’s just been really seeing pieces pull together,” she said. “Even though we had students in the building, there were just parts and pockets that weren’t done yet. Now it’s the completed project, and it does make a different feel in the hallways when you go down by the trophy cases and all the different areas to see things that are related not only to the past John A. Holmes, but also to our future John A. Holmes.”

That philosophy is evident throughout the building.

The main hallway connecting the front academic wing to the rear of the school features a large graphic that layers a historic map of Edenton over a digital rendering of the former John A. Holmes High School. At its center, a large video display continuously rotates photographs spanning generations of Holmes students, teachers and school traditions.

Nearby, the Athletic Hall of Fame preserves pieces of the former campus in a way that immediately captures the attention of alumni.

The familiar blue “E” from center court of the old Holmes gymnasium—one of the final sections of the former school to be demolished—has been incorporated into the floor beneath displays of athletic trophies and memorabilia. Sections of the original wooden bleachers frame the exhibit above trophy cases, while digital displays celebrate teams and individual athletes who helped define Holmes athletics over the decades.

Coming full circle

For outgoing Principal Sonya Rinehart, Friday’s open house carried special meaning.

A Holmes graduate herself, Rinehart returned to her alma mater as a teacher, guidance counselor, assistant principal and eventually principal. She also led the transition that saw students attend classes in three temporary locations while the new campus was constructed.

Standing at her post near a sceience lab during Friday’s open house, she reflected on how many people helped shape both the school and her own career.

“It came full circle,” she said.

Earlier Friday, school officials hosted a dedication ceremony honoring many of the educators and organizations that made the new campus possible. Among those attending were former principal Rob Boyce, retired superintendents Dr. Allan Smith and Dr. John Dunn, and former superintendent Dr. Rob Jackson.

“It was almost a God-wink moment to be surrounded by the people who helped get you to this place,” Rinehart said. “It was never done alone. It’s been a village.”

She smiled as she described hearing visitors react to the finished campus.

“Everybody seems to think this is fabulous,” she said. “They are amazed at the thought that went behind the construction, the thought and the design.”

One comment surfaced repeatedly.

“They’re excited about all of the light,” Rinehart said. “They said it’s just a bright, happy place.”

She also pointed to the expanded Career and Technical Education facilities as one of the school’s greatest strengths.

“Our downstairs CTE labs offer the trades that are necessary for a lot of our students,” she said. “It’s making sure everybody has those trade skills, and it opens up tons of job opportunities in our community and other communities.”

Rinehart’s final day as principal is Aug. 1. She said knowing the school will be led by incoming principal Victoria Brinson makes stepping away easier.

“They’ll be in phenomenal hands with somebody who loves this school, cherishes this school and this community,” Rinehart said. “She’ll take it to the next level.”

Looking Ahead

Brinson toured the campus Friday with the enthusiasm of someone eager to welcome students back next month.

“The school is absolutely amazing,” she said. “The finishing touches —i t’s all wrapped in a bow.”

She said the completed details have transformed the building into something that feels distinctly like John A. Holmes.

“It just feels like home,” she said.

Brinson, who used to teach history at the school, was particularly struck by the openness of the design.

“It feels airier,” she said.

She also praised the school’s performing arts auditorium, saying the finished space exceeded her expectations.

“I didn’t feel like I was in Edenton,” she said. “It just looked amazing.”

Brinson credited Rinehart’s leadership throughout the transition and said she looks forward to building on the foundation already established when students return Aug. 24.

A vision realized

Among those returning for Friday’s celebration was former Edenton-Chowan Schools Superintendent Jackson, who helped guide the project during its formative years before taking his current role as superintendent of Buncombe County Schools in western North Carolina. He is retiring Sept. 1 after over 30 years in education.

Despite now leading one of the state’s largest school districts, Jackson traveled back to Edenton to celebrate the completion of a project that began during his tenure.

Standing inside the finished building, he reflected on years of planning finally becoming reality.

“I am blown away,” Jackson said.

He credited generations of educators, county leaders, school board members and community supporters for making the project possible.

“I’m so grateful for all the wonderful folks who worked so hard for generations to bring this to fruition,” he said.

Walking through the halls, one thought stood above all others.

“The students have a building worthy of them,” Jackson said.

Experiencing Holmes

Throughout Friday evening, visitors moved from room to room as teachers and students showcased programs ranging from engineering and science to culinary arts, fine arts and career training.

A recent member of the Class of 2026, the first graduating class to spend part of its senior year in the new building, returned with family members that included an incoming freshman.

The graduate remarked that the school feels noticeably more open and airy than the facilities students used before construction was completed.

A family member who attended the former Holmes campus before its demolition was surprised by how spacious the new building feels despite occupying much of the same site. She was particularly impressed by the size of the gymnasium, the performing arts auditorium and the athletic training facilities, noting that the equipment available to Holmes students rivals — and in some cases exceeds — what she has seen at her college.

That sense of discovery was shared by many visitors.

Children explored classrooms they hope to occupy one day. Alumni searched for familiar names in trophy cases and photographs. Former educators reunited with colleagues while reflecting on decades of Holmes history.

By the end of the evening, the building no longer felt like a construction project or even simply a new school.

It felt like John A. Holmes.

As one generation of educators prepares to hand the school to the next, the halls now tell two stories at once—one celebrating more than 70 years of Holmes tradition, the other waiting to be written by the students who will walk them in the years ahead.