LEHI — Not many students get to help build their own school.

But Friday afternoon, dozens of children grabbed hammers and began pounding nails into the walls of their school building.

The kids had permission to play construction worker at a "Coming Soon" celebration for Challenger School, a private school for students preschool through eighth grades.

The school is being built at 3920 N. Traverse Mountain Blvd., Lehi, just east of the Highland/Alpine interstate exit.

The multimillion-dollar 44,000-square-foot two-story structure is slated to house up to 300 children this fall. Students will move from the old Challenger building at 730 N. 300 East, Orem. School officials haven't decided what to do with the old building.

Devon McPherson, the current principal of the Orem-based school, will follow the students to the new school.

"We will have a grade-A building to match our grade-A education," McPherson said. "I can't wait for this school. It's going to be astounding."

The school's original groundbreaking event was scheduled for last January but was canceled due to a snowstorm. At Friday's event, Holly Mendenhall, wife of BYU football coach Bronco Mendenhall, addressed the crowd of about 50 people. She and her husband have three children in Challenger.

"I've been driving by and watching the progress. It's just a delight," she said. "I'm so thankful that we can be here.

"And as long as the Cougars keep winning, maybe we can keep staying here," she said, to which the crowd whooped and clapped.

Challenger School founder Barbara B. Baker, who launched the school in 1963, attended the ceremony. "This is our first experience to build a building from ground up," Baker said. "It's just absolutely a dream come true."

Challenger has campuses in California, Idaho and Nevada. The Lehi site is the ninth campus to be located in Utah. A new campus is planned to open in Farmington this fall.

The Lehi location was chosen because many parents who send their children to the private school live in the Highland/Alpine area. Further, the school site is near the interstate exit, said Clint Kirry, Challenger School marketing manager.

"We wanted to make it easy for commuters," Kirry said. "And it's a terrific view."

The school takes in the sight of the lake and surrounding mountains.

Parent Jenna Tew, of Provo, said she will bring her children to the school regardless of the distance. Her daughter Morgan, 6, says she loves Challenger and likes science best "because I get to discover."

Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, R-Orem, addressed the group Friday, saying the single most important thing society can do is educate its children.

"In recent years, we have seen the tradition of opportunity and excellence in our schools decline," Sandstrom said. "We have seen education turn into a bureaucracy where parents are sitting on the sidelines and they're not involved. Thank goodness we have an organization like Challenger School."

The building project is within budget and on schedule to be finished this summer, said Jay Anderton, director of development and expansion for Challenger School.

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E-mail: astewart@desnews.com