Wheaton Christian unveils new look for students

It had been several years since Chuck Martin attended a first day of school for his son Braden.

He said it had been even longer since he last captured those moments on camera.

But the Wheaton resident had an added incentive to snap several keepsake photographs Tuesday morning. Braden, who is in eighth grade, started his final year with Wheaton Christian Grammar School at its new 35-acre campus in Winfield.

"It's really cool because it's bigger and has a lot more space," 14-year-old Braden said after posing for pictures outside the 92,000-square-foot building.

Parents, students and faculty all were giving high marks to the $25 million facility, which replaced the 1950s-era building the school used to occupy at 530 E. Harrison Ave. in Wheaton.

"The old building was ready to be retired," said parent Sherri Siefert of West Chicago.

The new building at 1N350 Taylor Drive includes 27 state-of-the-art classrooms to accommodate up to 650 kindergartners to eighth-graders, a 3,000-square-foot library, a science laboratory, a gymnasium and a dedicated fine arts wing.

"I feel gratitude for the Lord and his blessing on the whole process," Head of School Stephen Clum said of the building's construction.

He said some of Wheaton Christian's 536 students were eager to start the school year a few weeks ago.

"It's so exciting to see," Clum said.

While she liked the old building, eighth-grader Kate Wall said there simply wasn't enough room.

"But the new library is a lot bigger," the 13-year-old Winfield resident said. "I really love how there's real light streaming through the windows. And there's a lot more books."

Computer teacher Marilyn Scott, who is starting her 11th year with the school, said the computer lab is twice as large as the one in the old building.

"If you had seen my little corner of the world in the other building," she said, "you would recognize what a fabulous opportunity this is."

School officials say the extra space is needed so the school can grow. Clum said there has been about a 30-student increase in enrollment compared to last year.

Renee Lotz is the mother of two of those children.

The Geneva resident was planning to transfer her son and daughter to Wheaton Christian once they started middle school. But both fifth-graders like the school so much they didn't want to wait.

"It just so happened that there's the new building," she said. "That made it even more exciting. They won't feel left out."