Construction of the South Warren High School/Middle School building at the intersection of Highways 31-W and 242 in southern Warren County is moving ahead nicely. The Warren County Board of Education voted to award the construction bid for the school system's fourth middle school and fourth traditional high school to D. W. Wilburn Inc. of Lexington. The winning base bid was $55.1 million. This does not include the athletic complex for the two schools, which was bid separately. The bid for the 339,000-square-foot building comes in at $165 per square foot, which architect Kenny Stanfield of Sherman Carter Barnhart says is below the current state average of $175.

The design developed by Sherman Carter Barnhart will make the South Warren schools unique. The plans call for the middle school and high school to be housed in one large building with an auditorium in the middle. Having the two schools in one large building has many advantages, including short-term and long-term cost savings. The two schools will share a kitchen, and the shared auditorium will give the middle school access to a facility that most middle schools don't have. In addition, the proximity to the high school will allow middle school students to easily take advanced courses at the high school. 

When completed in 2010, South Warren High School and Middle School will be carrying on a tradition in Warren County. In 1942, after fires destroyed the Rich Pond and Woodburn high school buildings, students from those two schools and Rockfield High School merged to form South Warren High School. Located at Highways 68-80 and 242, the South Warren High School building served students in grades 9-12 until 1950, when Warren County High School (now Warren Central) was built. Now, at a site near where the old South Warren High School was located, a new South Warren is being built. The middle school and high school will meet the needs of a growing part of the county and help relieve the explosive growth at Greenwood High School and Drakes Creek Middle School.