Students at W. Reily Brown Elementary School are having an unusual school year.
While the Webbs Lane school building undergoes a yearlong renovation, first- to fifth-graders and their teachers have moved to Dover Air Force Base, spreading out into different buildings.
Principal Craig Wearden said the Airman Leadership School — which housed McIlvaine Early Childhood students during its renovation last year — hosts first-, second- and two third-grade classrooms along with the main office. The nearby interconnected Welch Elementary and Air Base Middle School have the other half of the student population, with one third-grade and two fourth-grade classrooms in Welch and the remaining fourth-grade classrooms and all fifth-graders in Air Base Middle.
“What surprises me is how everyone comes together, whether it’s the district office or teachers,” he said of the relocation. “Normally we’re kind of an island and I see other principals at meetings and we teach the same curriculum, but it’s nice to have us working together.”
The planning for the move began a year ago, even though staff weren’t sure yet whether the Caesar Rodney School District would receive the needed state money for the renovation. According to district staff, the building population has to stay together in order to keep its status as a separate school.
Using any difficulties encountered by McIlvaine last year and trying to address them, Wearden said the relocation process has been successful.
“I think it’s actually gone really smooth,” he said. “The hardest part is to keep a sense of school.”
To address that, the staff has scheduled some spirit activities.
Wearden said it has taken a bit of choreography to have essentially three schools and only one cafeteria available. Students at the leadership school are eating in their classrooms and will do so until February when the airmen are finished with their course. A number of picnic tables also have been ordered that will allow students to eat outside, he added.
Another challenge is that at the leadership school, there are only two girls’ and two boys’ restrooms for all the students, Wearden said.
Staff, including the school nurse, use a golf cart to travel the 400 yards from the leadership school to the other buildings and vise versa, he said. Specials teachers for areas like art, music and library are utilizing carts.
Although some parents chose to move their children into other schools for the year, Wearden still had to condense 24 classrooms down to 18. He said ordinarily they might pull out special education students into a separate class, but now have them in the regular room with two teachers. Special education students who need more attention have been transferred to Star Hill Elementary, because of the lack of space.
The base itself also has been very accommodating. He said the gate guards have a list of all those authorized to pick up students, so parents or guardians don’t have to call ahead, only bring a valid ID.
“The teachers and I joke that we’re making lemonade,” Wearden said of the situation.
Third-grade teacher Monica McCurry echoed that everyone is making the best of it.
“The light at the end of the tunnel is the new building,” she said.
McCurry said riding the bus is the biggest adjustment she’s seen students have to make, and once parents came over and saw the situation many fears were eased.
Ninety percent of the school used to walk and a number of students had never ridden a bus before, Wearden said.
In addition, he’s explained carefully about the Air Force uniform because for some students a uniform is intimidating, he said.
“Students tell me they miss the old building, and I can’t blame them,” Wearden said. “I miss the old building too.”
Email Jayne Gest at jayne.gest@doverpost.com
Dover, Del. —
