PROGRESS REPORT - More than 85 percent of the exterior brickwork on Ilion's new Junior-Senior High School building is complete. Workmen will be applying the gymnasium roof of the $1,281,000 school next week. Target date for completion is December. The general contractor is the McKay Construction Co., Binghamton. (Photo courtesy of Observer Dispatch, May 11, 1965.)

NEW SCHOOL OPENS - Yesterday marked the opening day of normal sessions in Ilion Junior-Senior High School after nearly three years of split sessions, from 7:15 to 5:30. (Photo by Arline Abrams from the Observer Dispatch, February 3, 1966.)

Imagine what it would be like if you had to go to school from 7:00 until 12:00 or from 12:00 until 5:00. You're thinking "Yeah right"! Well, for almost three years, the students at Ilion Junior-Senior high had to.

On April 21, 1963, split sessions began because a terrible fire destroyed the school. Students in grades 10-12 went in the morning, and students in grades 7-9 went in the afternoon.

The total cost for the reconstruction of the school was $1,281,000. The new school was constructed by the McKay Construction Co.

Regularly scheduled school days were to start on January 31, 1966, but because of the of "Blizzard of 66", school was delayed for another two days. Some students were happy to get back to a normal day of classes, but some liked the idea of having the afternoon off.