Dist. 59: Expansion needed at Rupley school

Elk Grove Township Elementary District 59 officials this week said the planned addition at Rupley Elementary School is needed because the school's general enrollment is growing.

Construction of a new multipurpose room and two new classrooms at Rupley is expected to begin in October.

Responding to recent letters published in the Daily Herald from residents criticizing the expansion as being just for Hispanic students, District 59 spokeswoman Betsy Boswell said the addition will provide more space for the Elk Grove Village school's growing student population at large.

"It's just generally we needed more room at that school," said Boswell, who added that it's true the district's demographics have changed in recent years to include more students of Hispanic origin.

"The population at Rupley has been steadily growing with English language learners," Boswell said. "Two or three years back, Rupley did not have any bilingual classrooms."

For years, Rupley's non-English speaking students went to Salt Creek School, which was the center of the district's bilingual education. But Salt Creek soon became overcrowded so the district started a bilingual program at Rupley, Boswell said.

Rupley's enrollment has grown from 371 students in 2007-08 to 438 students in 2009-10, surpassing Salt Creek, which had 420 students enrolled in 2009-10.

The new multipurpose room and two new classrooms planned for Rupley are just extra space, Boswell said.

"Enrollment (in general) has been increasing, and there wasn't enough room in the current multipurpose room for all the kids to eat lunch," Boswell said. "Some of the kids were having to eat in their classrooms so that's what the multipurpose room is for."

The school's existing multipurpose room will be turned into a conference room and quiet room for the special education students at Rupley.

Meanwhile, work continues on a new teacher's lounge, staff work room, nurse's office and renovation of the front office/entryway at Rupley School, and an eight-classroom addition at Juliette Low School that began in November 2009. Both projects are expected to be completed for the start of school on Aug. 25.

Work on another addition planned for the Ridge Family Center for Learning - the district's year-round school in Elk Grove Village where classes started Wednesday - also will begin in October. It involves building two new classrooms and a multipurpose room as the school presently doesn't have one forcing students to eat lunch in the gymnasium, Boswell said.

Open registration for all District 59 schools will be held Aug. 11. Due to ongoing construction, Rupley's registration will be held in the library resource center.