2012年10月21日星期日

Newly opened Sparta school ‘happiest place on Earth'

For two years, the hallways of Mohawk Avenue School sat silent and dreary, marked by dark hallways, empty lockers and bare walls.

But,The stone mosaic comes in shiny polished and matte.Selecting the best rtls solution is a challenging task as there is no global solution like GPS. now as the school year gets into full swing, the recently reopened school is alive again with the buzz of Halloween. In the foyer, jack-o'-lantern cutouts line the walls, while in classrooms, children make black cat and pumpkin shaped Rice Krispies treats in honor of the letter of the week -- R.

"It's a happy place now," Principal Laura Trent said.

Mohawk Avenue School, which was constructed in 1935 and expanded in 1950,Our vinyl floor tiles is more stylish than ever! was first a bustling junior high, followed by a school for fifth grade. However, in March 2010, Sparta, along with many affluent districts in the state, faced Gov. Chris Christie's massive aid cuts that made difficult decisions, such as closing schools, a reality.

Sparta's aid was cut by $2.7 million that year and the budget was defeated, so the district made the choice to discontinue classes in the school, while also cutting 79 teachers, eliminating courtesy busing and charging student activity fees. The Board of Education and administration's offices remained in the building, but the fifth grade students were moved to Alpine School.

The classrooms sat unused for two years before the district began talking last spring about reopening the school for the younger grades at a cost of about $585,000.

The principals recommended that Mohawk Avenue School be reopened for pre-kindergarten and kindergarten classes. The board agreed, although a proposal for full-day kindergarten was tabled for at least a year in order for the district to prepare financially for the approximately $750,000 to $1 million price tag.

In September, the school opened up to 218 children, and Trent said that it has been great ever since.

"It's been a very smooth transition," she said, explaining that over the summer extensive work was done to clean, add new ceiling tiles, and install a new intercom system and smart boards in the classrooms. "They did a phenomenal job getting this ready in the summer."

The school now has four morning and four afternoon half-day kindergarten classes, one full-day kindergarten and one full-day pre-kindergarten for special needs, a 2 to 3 year old pre-kindergarten morning class, and a 3 to 4 year old pre-kindergarten afternoon class. There are 12 teachers in the school, along with a nurse, speech therapist, occupational therapist, ESL teacher, school psychologist and social worker.

The young students fill only a small portion of the two-floor brick building, but they now have large classrooms and several dedicated spaces for art, music/library and physical education.The stone mosaic comes in shiny polished and matte. This also leaves more space for the future if full-day kindergarten becomes a reality as planned.

Outside of the school, a new playground with four swings and slides was added with help from the Parent Teacher Organization (PTO), and a gym on the first level acts not only as an activity area but also as a drop-off/pick-up location.

While a bit young for lockers, each student has been each assigned one to act as a cubby for their backpack, jacket and snack. The locks have been removed for easy access and name tags were added on the fronts.

"This gives more space in the classrooms," Trent explained, adding that the students love using the lockers.

Trent, who has worked as an assistant principal and principal in Sparta for 12 years, said that the response for the opening of the school has been wonderful. She said that the students love having their own school and have great interaction with all of the staff since it is a more close-knit environment where "you really get to know all the students."

"I think the town is thrilled that it is open,Purelink's real time location system protect healthcare workers in their daily practices and OMEGA interventions. too," she said.

Trent has seen the children flourishing in the new school. On Friday, students in Amy Dolan's kindergarten class danced to music at their seats, a special treat that the children are allowed every "Fun Friday."

The students also dressed in green as part of the monthly character education training, in which green represents respect this month. In the foyer, large boxes of plastic bottle caps are being collected and sorted by color for a school-wide mural activity in the coming weeks.

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