Staff at Joliet’s Gompers Jr. High leave mark on new gym floor

Joliet — As the school year came to close in Joliet Public Schools District 86, teachers and staff were given a chance to leave their marks on a new piece of school history.

On June 4, more than 100 Gompers Junior High School staff members were given the chance to sign the new gym floor, which is currently under construction, District 86 Director for Communications and Development Sandra Zalewski said.

“It was exciting to have the Gompers staff leave their mark on the new school,” District 86 Superintendent Theresa Rouse said in a written statement. “They had fun deciding where to sign their names and walking around the massive gym.”

The signatures will be covered by the flooring of the new gym and will remain a part of the school throughout its lifetime, according to the district.

Construction of the new gym will continue on the southwest corner of Briggs Street and Copperfield Avenue throughout the summer break and is expected to be ready for the start of the school year in August.

The new 13,000-square-foot gym is the first phase of the complete reconstruction of Gompers Junior High and needed to be completed so the old gym could be knocked down to clear space for the new school’s main building.

The old gym will be demolished later in June after school is finished for the year, according to the district.

Construction on the new junior high building will continue throughout next school year, with the entire building expected to be open to sixth-, seventh- and eighth-grade students in August 2026.

The current sixth-grade class of Gompers, who had the opportunity in February to sign a beam that will be installed in the new school building, will be the first class of students to graduate in the new school in June 2027.

Gompers is one of two Joliet junior highs currently undergoing reconstruction. The district is simultaneously replacing both Gompers and Hufford junior high schools with all-new facilities meant to replace the aging buildings.

The new Hufford Junior High also is on track to be completed for the 2026-27 school year.