LUZERNE COUNTY, Pa. — The decision to close the three Wilkes-Barre Area High Schools evolved over time in the early 2010s.
The buildings were aging Coughlin was more than 100 years old.
And each had its own structural issues that were only getting worse and more expensive.
But even after it was finally agreed that a new school needed to be built it took a while to settle on a site.
After looking inside the city the district finally decided on 22 acres of old mining land in Plains Township.
A 4000-square foot building with a price tag of $80 million began to go up on the unused plot.
Meanwhile back in the city students in the district prepared for the historic merger.
Three high schools would soon become one.
By 2019 some two years before the new high school would open student-athletes from GAR, Coughlin, and Meyers were already playing sports under one banner The Wilkes-Barre Area Wolfpack.
By early 2021 the final proms and graduations at the three soon-to-be-closed high schools.
As a century of public education went into the history books.
After a decade of planning, preparing, and building.
The new era for the Wilkes-Barre Area School District begins Thursday morning.