Back to School: With a High-Performance Roof Over Their Heads
Clement Elementary School's roof was signed by the students before being placed.
Before the new roof went up at Clement Elementary School in Autryville, North Carolina, the principal had one request: let the children sign it first.
Today, that panel sits atop the school, signifying the importance of the roof to every kid’s day.
It’s also a visual reminder of what happens at schools across the country every summer. While administrators focus on incoming students, new teachers, and fresh notebooks, builders must deliver safe, reliable buildings — often in tight construction windows and sweltering weather.
High-performance roofing systems play an important role in protecting the libraries, classrooms, cafeterias, and gymnasiums that allow students to learn without interruption — in buildings that will keep them safe and dry through their schooling.
Two recent projects — a repair that was tested before it was even complete in North Carolina and a ground-up build in Texas — show what that looks like, and what’s riding on getting it right.
A new Duro-Last® roof ends buckets in the hallways
Clement Elementary School was facing persistent roof leaks, highlighting their need for a new system.
For years, teachers at Clement Elementary kept buckets on hand. Their school roof suffered persistent leaks, disrupting classrooms and putting even more pressure on an aging system. All they could do was catch the drips.
A federal grant through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) program came to the rescue. B&M Roofing replaced the roof entirely, building a new roofing and wall system around Duro-Last® Duro-Tuff® membrane, EXCEPTIONAL Metals standing-seam roof panels, SECUROCK® cover board, and Duro-Guard® ISO crickets — a combination chosen for long-term durability.
The hardest part was that all this had to happen while school was in session. Crews worked around the academic day, avoiding crane operations during school hours and keeping safe pathways open for students and staff.
The timing was a challenge and a boon. With kids on-site, they were there to leave their mark — signing a roof that would see them through their schooling and protect many classes to come.
The roof that passed its test before the first day of school
While the roof was being laid at the Angleton Campus, crews battled a hurricane and kept the project on schedule.
In Angleton, Texas, crews from Strategic Roofing Solutions were mid-installation when Hurricane Beryl struck. Racing to protect materials and partially finished sections, this Elevate Master Contractor team kept the project on schedule — a real-time test of the roofing system before a single student entered the building.
Outwitting the weather aside, this property came with some novel ambitions. The Angleton campus is a first-of-its-kind "school village” bringing together an elementary school and junior high campus to serve students from kindergarten through eighth grade. Spanning more than 219,000 square feet, the campus was designed to support decades of enrollment in a fast-growing Gulf community.
To hold up to the Gulf climate long-term, the team installed a multi-layer roofing system — ISOGARD™ polyiso insulation, ISO Spray™ R adhesive and an SBS modified bitumen assembly. Backed by a 20-year Elevate Red Shield™ Warranty, it’s ready for all the activities, growth and weather the community wants to throw at it.
Built to last throughout the school year and beyond
The Angleton Campus roof is built to last, backed by a 20-year warranty.
Whether it’s a decades-old school finally getting relief from leaks or an entirely new campus in Texas, these projects share a common purpose: creating safe, resilient spaces where students can learn, teachers can educate, and communities can thrive.
As another school year begins, that’s the job we’re proud to support: building the places where America’s next generation will grow, discover. and succeed — and where the roof is the last thing anyone will think about.