Sienna Plantation Welcomes Newest Resident – Ridge Point High School
Sienna Plantation has been selected as the home of Fort Bend Independent School District’s 11th High School - Ridge Point High School. Scheduled to open in August for the 2010-2011 school year, Ridge Point High School will be able to accommodate 2,200 to 2,500 students in grades 9th-12th. During its first academic year, the school will house 9th and 10th grade students at the $73 million campus.
With the completion of Ridge Point High School, Sienna Plantation will be able to provide neighborhood education for children from Kindergarten through 12th grade. “We are excited that Sienna Plantation is now home to five highly-rated Fort Bend Independent School District campuses - three elementary schools, one middle school campus and now, a high school campus,” said Michael Smith, General Manager for Johnson Development’s Sienna Plantation. “Not many neighborhoods have the ability to provide a complete education for the entire family within a single neighborhood.”
A state-of-the-art facility located in the heart of Sienna Plantation, the 30,000 square-foot building features two gymnasiums, a performance auditorium, complete science labs and computer labs along with specific areas designated for the band and orchestra. In addition, there will be a 14,500 square-foot field house, a football stadium, competition baseball and softball fields, two tennis courts and practice fields for football and soccer teams. Track and field events such as pole vaulting, discus, long jump and shot put will also have practice areas within the school’s perimeter. The marching band will also be provided with an outdoor practice area complete with a drum major tower. Athletic teams will participate in the junior varsity level during the first academic year, and then all sports, except football, will advance to the varsity level. Football will be introduced as a varsity sport in the fall of 2012.
Two of Sienna’s elementary schools, Sienna Crossing and Scanlan Oaks, are included among Fort Bend’s 18 Exemplary-rated elementary schools. Sienna Crossing, the community’s first on-site school, has been consistently lauded for its academic standing with students easily outscoring their peers on state-mandated TAKS tests. Scanlan Oaks opened in 2004 and shares a Texas Education Agency (TEA) Exemplary rating with high student scores. The newest elementary school, Jan Schiff Elementary, opened in the 2008-2009 school year and was awarded a Recognized rating in its inaugural year.
Baines Middle School, a $25 million campus that opened in 2006, provided Sienna Plantation’s children with a middle school campus featuring computer labs, art classrooms, a technology lab, competition and practice gyms and a life management lab. The campus also features a football field, weight room, four tennis courts and practice fields for baseball, softball and soccer.
Until this year, Sienna students graduating from Baines Middle School, along with high school age children living in the community, attended Elkins High School and Hightower High School. For the coming year, they will attend Ridge Point High School.
Ridge Point High School’s unique name was chosen by a committee of parents, students, campus staff members and two school board trustees, Laurie Caldwell and Daniel Menendez and has a historical significance. The name chosen represents two of the industries responsible for the economic growth in Fort Bend - “Blue Ridge” and “Stafford’s Point.” Stafford’s Point was the end point of the first operational railroad in Texas. The rail line served as a shipping point for the Blue Ridge Oil Field and salt mine.
Ridge Point High School will be offering a prestigious academy for Early College preparation starting in the 2011-2012 school year. The Academies in Fort Bend ISD have become great resources and educational opportunities for students accepted in the programs.
