Brady PieperPrince William County Schools (PWCS), the second largest school division in Virginia, is unveiling a new plan that will invest nearly $1.1 billion to modernize, repair and upgrade school facilities.
The division’s proposed Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), presented at a school board work session last month, outlines the next five years of facility and infrastructure projects. If approved, the plan will be an essential tool for PWCS as it prepares for the next generation of students and educators.
Under the proposed CIP, the school board anticipates leveraging an additional $135 million in bonds, general fund transfers and Proffer funding to finance capital improvement projects. Representing an approximately 14% increase in spending from the existing CIP, the new plan raises funding for several project categories, including construction, maintenance and artificial turf and track upgrades.
A primary goal of the CIP will be to address overcrowding in some PWCS campuses. The CIP proposes the construction of several new schools that alleviate congestion and improve reliable access to education. These include:
- Occoquan Replacement School – The project would replace the existing elementary school to add an additional 226 spots for students. Scheduled to open in December, the new school looks to alleviate overcrowding in Occoquan and introduce students to special education programs.
- Woodbridge Area Elementary – The project will expand capacity at Woodbridge. While the project is delayed until the 2026-27 school year, it is anticipated to eliminate the need for portable classrooms and expand specialty options for students.
- Potomac Shores Elementary School #2 – The project will increase the school’s program capacity to approximately 1,050 students. Addressing new residential developments in the area, the school expansion will offer overcrowding relief to students and families as early as the 2027-28 school year.
- 14th High School – The project will construct a new high school to reduce congestion at the Charles H. Colgan Sr., Forest Park and Freedom high schools. Considering transfer and zoning rates, the new high school will potentially offer similar programs to Osbourn Park High School that reduce overcrowding. The project is also considering a robotics (aquatic) and drone lab at a school-based clinic.
In addition to new constructions, the CIP prioritizes investments that enhance existing schools’ capacity and ability to serve new students.
A capacity enhancement initiative at Nokesville School and Marsteller Middle School will receive some changes under the new CIP. The project, which initially intended to add 30 classrooms at both facilities, will be amended, reducing the number of new classrooms to 20 with 10 reserved for middle school and 10 reserved for elementary.
Dale City Elementary School is another PWCS facility in dire need of renovation, according to the CIP. The plan proposes a full renovation of the facility, including ADA improvements, revamped parking and new mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems. The proposed project also seeks to construct an 8-classroom addition to eliminate the need for portable classrooms.
Two already approved projects will receive budget and scope changes under this proposed CIP. The projects, located at the Pennington Traditional School and the Washington-Reid Preschool Center, seek to increase capacity for students and renovate existing facilities. The CIP proposes adding an additional two classrooms to Pennington’s project and shifting Washington-Reid’s scope to include full kitchen, HVAC, ADA and parking renovations.
While developing these improvements, the school board emphasizes sustainable building methods, utility upgrades and renewable energy installations that contribute to making school facilities more environmentally friendly. Over the next five years, projects addressing maintenance and sustainability will be earmarked for about $334 million, almost twice the amount of funding from the existing CIP.
The largest sustainability and maintenance initiative, icoming in at $81.9 million, will install and upgrade HVAC systems across 14 schools. The massive project will significantly enhance PWCS’s utilities by replacing aging infrastructure and improving air quality for students and faculty.
Emphasizing environmental sustainability, the CIP features over $30 million in combined funding for LED lighting upgrades and solar array installations. These investments would bring PWCS facilities up to compliance with the Virginia High-Performance Building Act and other state and local initiatives.
Funding for other maintenance and sustainability projects in the CIP includes $13.3 million for inefficient window renovations, $6.3 million for critical electrical infrastructure replacements, $3.1 million to install new intercom systems and $1.3 million to modernize fire alarm systems.
The CIP also features $24 million in funding for the installation of artificial turf fields and tracks at eight PWCS high schools, including upgrades to the Potomac, Woodbridge, Forest Park, Gar-Field, C.D. Hylton, Unity Road, Battlefield and Osbourn facilities.
The proposed CIP will enter the review process, where the plan will be refined and amended as part of the budget process. The board anticipates final approval by March. If enacted, PWCS’s CIP for FY 2026-2030 would act as an amended substitute for the district’s existing 2025-2029 Approved CIP.
As inflation, construction costs and facility upgrades become increasingly expensive, the school board will continue to assess the budgets’ ability to manage future capital improvement projects. The full 2026-2030 CIP proposal, including enrollment and community statistics, is available on PWCS’ website.
Photo courtesy G. Edward Johnson, CC BY 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
