Old Tappan school addition moves toward summer 2026 construction after state approval

The Old Tappan School District’s TBD addition project has moved from local planning to an approved construction schedule. The project was presented to the Old Tappan Planning Board in February 2026, then approved by the New Jersey Department of Education in March.

Construction is scheduled to begin in summer 2026 and continue through the 2026-27 school year and summer 2027. The timeline means the project is expected to remain part of the district’s operating calendar beyond the initial summer work, although the district’s published information does not announce closures or specific schedule changes.

What the timeline means for families

For students and families, the main confirmed change is the length of the planned work: the addition project spans summer 2026, the full 2026-27 school year and summer 2027. The available district announcement does not specify the project’s total cost, the number of classrooms involved or the construction phases.

Those details matter for parents, school employees and local taxpayers trying to understand how the work will affect daily operations and the district’s finances. Based on the approved timeline, however, the project is not described as a short summer-only undertaking. The district has not reported closures or altered schedules in the supplied materials.

District also announces school recognition

Separately, the district announced in June 2026 that TBD and CDW were named 2026 Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence Lighthouse Schools. The designation is a school recognition announced by the district; the supplied materials do not identify it as a federal National Blue Ribbon award.

The recognition provides context as the district prepares for the addition project, but it is separate from the state approval and construction schedule. The district’s June newsletter also documented an eighth-grade celebration and student awards held June 18, 2026.

Families were expected to receive the district’s 2026-27 online summer packet by late July. That is the next dated family-facing step identified in the supplied materials while the district prepares for the school year in which construction is scheduled to continue.

For now, the confirmed sequence is local presentation in February, state approval in March, planned construction beginning in summer 2026 and work continuing through summer 2027. Further information about costs, construction phases, closures or schedule changes was not included in the approved source material.