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Macy DeWispelare, executive director of the Westview YMCA, and Thomas Lee, principal of Westview High School, celebrate after cutting the ribbon at Thursday’s ceremony. They are surrounded by YMCA and OPS staff.

What do you get when you combine a YMCA with a high school?

Omaha is about to find out.

On Thursday, Omaha Public Schools and YMCA officials celebrated the opening of a full-service YMCA connected to the new Westview High School near 156th and Ida Streets. OPS officials hope that incoming students will benefit from the easy access to a gym and potential employment opportunities as the project gets off the ground.

Omaha Public Schools and YMCA officials on Thursday celebrated the opening of a full-service YMCA connected to the new Westview High School at 156th and Ida Streets.

About 100 people, including staff from both Westview High School and YMCA of Greater Omaha, gathered in the sprawling exercise area to give stakeholders an advance view of the space ahead of the Monday opening.

“This collaboration is truly future-forward, and everyone who walks through those doors will benefit from it today and for years to come,” said Arun Agarwal, a YMCA of Greater Omaha board member.

The facility will have areas that are exclusive to YMCA members and areas that are shared between students and patrons. YMCA patrons and students will not occupy spaces at the same time, and the YMCA will have a separate entrance so that patrons cannot access the school building.

Shared spaces include an indoor pool with eight lap lanes and two diving boards, an auxiliary gym, a wrestling room, a weight room and a dance and aerobics studio. Students will not have access to the sauna and steam room or the main wellness center with cardio and weight equipment.

Macy DeWispelare, the executive director of the Westview YMCA, said many Westview High students have already been hired to work at the gym. She said she hopes that the space will be a gathering place for the fast-growing community of Bennington.

An eight-lane swimming pool and adjacent splash pad will be shared by YMCA patrons and Westview students. YMCA patrons and students will not occupy spaces at the same time.

“It has been so much fun over these past few weeks to meet members of the community who are just as excited about this partnership as we are,” DeWispelare said.

Though this is the first YMCA school partnership to open in Omaha, other Nebraska schools have adopted similar models. Two middle schools in Lincoln share space with a local YMCA, and a smaller “express” YMCA location will open next month on the same campus as Buena Vista High School in South Omaha.

“Opening a new YMCA is always exciting, but we’re especially proud of our recent projects with OPS,” said YMCA of Greater Omaha CEO Rebecca Deterding. “This arrangement has been years in the making, and we are so excited to see our plans become a reality.”

OPS and the YMCA entered a tentative partnership in February 2018, and the school board officially approved a 50-year agreement with the YMCA in early 2020.

The facility will open to the public Monday, and a full slate of group fitness classes including cycling, yoga and aquatics already are on the schedule. Swim lessons for kids will begin in late September.

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Omaha Public Schools and YMCA officials on Thursday celebrated the opening of a full-service YMCA connected to the new Westview High School at 156th and Ida Streets.

Macy DeWispelare, executive director of the Westview YMCA, and Thomas Lee, principal of Westview High School, celebrate after cutting the ribbon at Thursday’s ceremony. They are surrounded by YMCA and OPS staff.

An eight-lane swimming pool and adjacent splash pad will be shared by YMCA patrons and Westview students. YMCA patrons and students will not occupy spaces at the same time.

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