Rio Grande City Grulla Independent School District officials and school staff say the construction of the new Grulla Middle School was a long time coming.

Parts of the old middle school date back to the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Students from 6th to 8th grade now have a brand-new state-of-the-art campus on Highway 83 right next to La Grulla High School. The new middle school broke ground back in 2022.

Three years later, the new middle school campus has nearly 700 students from La Grulla, Alto Bonito, Garciasville, La Casita, La Victoria and part of Sullivan City.

The 143,000 square-foot building cost a little over $35 million to build.

Grulla Middle School's new principal, Enedelia Rios said she's excited about the new school and some of the safety features it has.

"Our students did deserve a new facility so, therefore, we were long overdue for this facility," Rios said. "Every gate, every entrance, every exit has a camera, so, therefore, the safety of our students is our priority."

Rios says the campus also has a landline in every classroom, among other safety features. She is entering her 21st year in education as the new principal at Grulla Middle School.

The campus has state-of-the-art classrooms, science and computer labs.

This year's theme for the district is "Together We Rise", which focuses on working together to achieve success for their students.

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