Washington, D.C., performing arts school to get a makeover and upgrade

Washington, D.C., Mayor Vincent Gray is still launching school construction projects despite the fact that his term ends at the end of the year.

Gray, who will be succeeded by Muriel Bowser, will oversee the beginning of modernization of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, one of the city’s oldest school buildings.

The renovation will add more than 80,000 square feet of space, including new, non-traditional classrooms and digital art studios and dance studios, among other new amenities to the 116-year old building, CBS DC reported.

Former D.C. mayor Adrian Fenty, Gray’s predecessor, led a push to improve the city’s school facilities. Gray's administration has continued to make renovations and new school construction a priority, efforts which Bowser will inherit.