CHATHAM COUNTY, N.C. — It's a moment Seaforth High School Principal Tripp Crayton won't soon forget. The school is no longer a vision, but a reality.

"We would like for them to feel safe, we want them to feel welcomed, feel like this is a place they can call their second home," Crayton said.

Opening a brand new school is a big undertaking, especially during a global pandemic.

"When you walk down the hallways right now, you know, there's nothing on the walls. It's kind of bare," he said. "But then, when you come into our classrooms, the ultimate goal is it doesn't seem like a prison or seem like a jail, that it's very opening and inviting."

The classrooms have chairs that move for collaborative, roundtable discussions. There are also interactive panels to use the internet and share documents during lessons.

Aside from the fancy gadgets, it's English teachers like Justice Mansour who bring a classroom to life.

"Every teacher here is just on board to be part of an innovative and new school. We're all trying to make a great community," Mansour said.

The school has two gyms. What better way to build community than some school spirit? 

"As a principal, there's a lot on your shoulders because you want every kid to feel a part of the school. It's another place where the community can come together and cheer on the hawks," Crayton said.

The school, costing roughly $60 million total, has taken roughly three years to complete. Crayton says it's a worthy investment for generations of Seaforth Hawks to come.

"Building it from the ground up, not many principals can say they have done that or had that opportunity," he said. "All this blood, sweat and tears that we're putting into it, it will be worth it once it's all done."