Bell rings for Williamsburg School's first day
Williamsburg Elementary School students were so excited about the first day of class in the new school it took Principal Julie Dye three tries to get their attention. Despite the fact she was using a megaphone, and standing over them on a ladder on the playground where they were assembled, waiting to enter.
"This is the day we've been waiting for!" the Geneva school leader cried out Wednesday morning. "Someday when this building is 85 years old, and you are about 90, you'll look back and say, 'I was there on the very first day it opened.' "
After leading more than 560 students - plus many parents - in the Pledge of Allegiance, Dye gave the command: "Teachers, move those classes! You know how to do it!"
And so began Williamsburg's life as a replacement for Coultrap Elementary School.
Parents were invited to accompany their kids to class. They peeked in through hallway windows to the rooms, including an art room bright with natural light.
The two-story elementary school, for grades kindergarten through fifth, features three regular classroom wings on each floor. The library, computer room, gymnasium and art room are on the first floor.
"I can't pick one thing. It's so beautiful. It's so spacious," said second-grade teacher Liz Hazelton when asked what's best about the new building. "This is just over-the-top beautiful ... everything is just so inviting."
Fifth-grader Travis Rein said the best thing was the playground. Unfortunately, it wasn't ready for the first day of school; the soft surface material wasn't installed. Dye expects the playground to be done by the end of the week.
Meanwhile, over at the old Coultrap building on Peyton Street, Harrison Street Elementary School students were moving in, with the theme of "Harrison Crosses the Mighty River." Harrison Street's building, east of the Fox River, is closed for remodeling this school year. The district decided that rather than work around construction, it would move the school for the year in the empty Coultrap, an 85-year-old building on the west side of town.