Extras
The Future
St. John the Evangelist remains one of the few archdiocesan schools that still operates with a single class per grade. The campus has not seen major expansion in some time, but that may change in the future.
St. John the Evangelist remains one of the few archdiocesan schools that still operates with a single class per grade. The campus has not seen major expansion in some time, but that may change in the future.
Hapeville is a small but strategically valuable city due to its proximity to the airport and three major interstate highways. Because available land is limited and property values are high, developers have been constructing dense housing developments to maximize space. In the southern half of Hapeville, the recent and ongoing residential projects outlined above fall largely within a one-mile radius of St. John the Evangelist.
Among these developments are 87 single-family homes and 284 townhomes, which are narrow, three-story units built in continuous rows. Excluding the roughly 590 apartment units also under construction, these projects account for at least 371 new homes — and that number continues to grow. These houses are being listed at prices well above market average, indicating that many incoming residents will likely be higher-income families.
Hapeville does have a public elementary school, but it lacks a public middle school. As a result, St. John the Evangelist is the only middle school within the city limits, aside from Woodward Academy one city over. This positions the school to receive a significant share of new families.
Expanding the school to accommodate this potential growth would present major challenges. Land on the campus is limited, and horizontal expansion would reduce field space and require the convent to be demolished. Vertical expansion would mean building on top of a 70-year-old structure, which would be complex and costly.
Among these developments are 87 single-family homes and 284 townhomes, which are narrow, three-story units built in continuous rows. Excluding the roughly 590 apartment units also under construction, these projects account for at least 371 new homes — and that number continues to grow. These houses are being listed at prices well above market average, indicating that many incoming residents will likely be higher-income families.
Hapeville does have a public elementary school, but it lacks a public middle school. As a result, St. John the Evangelist is the only middle school within the city limits, aside from Woodward Academy one city over. This positions the school to receive a significant share of new families.
Expanding the school to accommodate this potential growth would present major challenges. Land on the campus is limited, and horizontal expansion would reduce field space and require the convent to be demolished. Vertical expansion would mean building on top of a 70-year-old structure, which would be complex and costly.
Context Behind This Project
My name is Anthony Tran, and I graduated from St. John the Evangelist in 2024 as a member of the school’s 67th graduating class. I aspired to attend a highly selective architecture university, many of which require applicants to submit portfolios. Meeting this requirement meant developing a deliberate and long-term plan to strengthen my work.
An early step in this plan was to apply my creative skills in ways that meaningfully supported my school communities. In 2019, I began developing a digital recreation of St. John the Evangelist. At the time, my 3D modeling skills were still developing, and the resulting model lacked accuracy. Eventually, I gave up on the project and deleted the files.
Because my siblings attended Our Lady of Mercy, I had the opportunity to walk through the campus many times and became familiar with its layout. Although the school is significantly larger than St. John the Evangelist, its organization is more straightforward. I decided to create a near 1:1 digital recreation of the campus as it appeared in both 2000 and 2020. I intended to present the completed model at the school’s 25th anniversary in 2025, with the goal of contributing to the celebration while establishing a connections with the school’s administration. Ultimately, I hoped this effort would lead to personalized letters of recommendation from the principal and director of advancement.
My name is Anthony Tran, and I graduated from St. John the Evangelist in 2024 as a member of the school’s 67th graduating class. I aspired to attend a highly selective architecture university, many of which require applicants to submit portfolios. Meeting this requirement meant developing a deliberate and long-term plan to strengthen my work.
An early step in this plan was to apply my creative skills in ways that meaningfully supported my school communities. In 2019, I began developing a digital recreation of St. John the Evangelist. At the time, my 3D modeling skills were still developing, and the resulting model lacked accuracy. Eventually, I gave up on the project and deleted the files.
Because my siblings attended Our Lady of Mercy, I had the opportunity to walk through the campus many times and became familiar with its layout. Although the school is significantly larger than St. John the Evangelist, its organization is more straightforward. I decided to create a near 1:1 digital recreation of the campus as it appeared in both 2000 and 2020. I intended to present the completed model at the school’s 25th anniversary in 2025, with the goal of contributing to the celebration while establishing a connections with the school’s administration. Ultimately, I hoped this effort would lead to personalized letters of recommendation from the principal and director of advancement.
This is a recreation of Our Lady of Mercy as it appeared in 2000.
When I instead enrolled at St. Pius X, I had to reconsider my approach. I chose to restart the St. John the Evangelist project from the ground up. This time, it would serve as a proof-of-concept for a far larger goal: a series of seven full-scale digital reconstructions of my high school campus as it existed at different points in history, planned for completion in time for the school’s 70th anniversary in 2028.
Over time, this work has shaped how I approach other projects with even broader scope and impact. The campus modeling effort demonstrated that I am capable of taking large, ambitious ideas and carrying them forward with careful planning and sustained commitment.
Over time, this work has shaped how I approach other projects with even broader scope and impact. The campus modeling effort demonstrated that I am capable of taking large, ambitious ideas and carrying them forward with careful planning and sustained commitment.
Despite the scale of this project, I feared that college officers would be unimpressed, as it was entirely based on an already-existing object and did not exhibit much creative.
To address that gap, I also designed a conceptual version of the campus — something original and dramatically different, yet still rooted in the same source of inspiration. This model imagined a school of about 600 students, with three classes per grade, and was created purely for the sake of exploring new ideas rather than practicality; it was never intended to be realistic.
To address that gap, I also designed a conceptual version of the campus — something original and dramatically different, yet still rooted in the same source of inspiration. This model imagined a school of about 600 students, with three classes per grade, and was created purely for the sake of exploring new ideas rather than practicality; it was never intended to be realistic.
The church has been converted into a middle school wing, and the Pre-K, Kindergarten, and auxiliary classrooms have been moved elsewhere, allowing the cafeteria to roughly double its capacity.
Aside from the material, color, and size, the iconic floor pattern has been left virtually untouched.
The hollow area at the front of the church with the high ceiling has been turned into the campus's third floor that houses three science labs.
This book and quill represents recording of the gospels and evangelism. On that book is a chi rho ("P" superimposed with an "X") that symbolizes Jesus and Catholicism — not the logo of St. Pius X!
This Marian monogram ("M" superimposed with an "A") represents the time when Jesus entrusted Mary to John before he died on the cross — not the logo of Marist!
This redesigned logo thoroughly showcases the school's patron.
This campus would require some right-of-way from existing neighboring properties.
Thank you for your attention! We appreciate your interest in our project and hope you found it interesting. Congratulations on keeping the school’s tradition of excellence thriving for over seven decades — here’s to many more.
Anthony Tran '24
Developer
Jonathan Hoang '25
Agastya Avashti '25
London Phan '27
Advisory & Validation
Anthony Tran '24
Developer
Jonathan Hoang '25
Agastya Avashti '25
London Phan '27
Advisory & Validation
WE ARE THE SJE FAMILY WITH JESUS IN THE CENTER OF ALL THAT WE DO. HE GUIDES US IN LEADERSHIP, SCHOLARSHIP, AND JOYFUL SERVICE TO OTHERS
REVERENCE
RESPECT
RESPONSIBILITY
GROUNDED IN THE CATHOLIC FAITH, ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST CATHOLIC SCHOOL NURTURES THE GOD-GIVEN POTENTIAL OF EACH STUDENT, PROVIDING A RIGOROUS ACADEMIC AND SPIRITUAL FOUNDATION FORMING COURAGEOUS AND COMPASSIONATE LEADERS
DUC IN ALTUM
GO OUT INTO THE DEEP
THE OFFICE OF CATHOLIC SCHOOLS FORMS STUDENTS IN THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST THROUGH ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE, FAITH FORMATION, AND SERVICE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH FAMILIES AND PARISHES
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No portion of these materials may be shared, redistributed, or disclosed outside the Archdiocese of Atlanta.
No portion of these materials may be shared, redistributed, or disclosed outside the Archdiocese of Atlanta.
