Room to breathe

Sioux Valley adds classrooms, multipurpose room to accommodate growing student body

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VOLGA – The sounds of happy students can now be heard throughout the new halls of the Sioux Valley Elementary School addition. The yearlong project is coming to a close now, with a few final punch list items left to take care of, but teachers and students are able to put the space to use as intended: a place of learning.

“That was the goal: to be in at the start of the 2018-2019 school year, and we accomplished that,” Sioux Valley School District Superintendent Laura Schuster said. 

With the project wrapping up, the school has gained 11 classrooms, a multipurpose room and a new office area with improved security.

Bids had come in for the project at about $3.1 million, and the projected cost has come in pretty close to that at $3.2 million, Schuster said. The project has been funded through existing capital outlay funds, “and that’s huge,” she added.

Part of the reason for the increase in costs is additional exterior work in the form of more concrete work and landscaping.

“There’s some additional curb and sidewalk, and then on the south side, we added some additional concrete south of the multipurpose room and also some concrete on the north side where students go out for recess,” Schuster said.

Completion of concrete work in front of the addition’s front entrance has been delayed due to weather, however, so that can’t be used quite yet.

Schuster expects the remaining concrete work to be done within two weeks’ time, weather permitting.

The front office for the elementary school is one of the most significant improvements to come from this project. The office features a clear view of the outside area leading up to the school and into the lobby, where guests will wait to be buzzed in.

The multipurpose room has been a welcome addition so far, too. The 58-by-38 room is an open room with a wooden gym-style floor. Tables and benches can fold out of the walls so that elementary students can be served their meals in this room, too.

An attached serving room is there; the food is still cooked at the main cafeteria, but it can now be brought over and kept warm for serving here.

“That’s really been nice to have that, just to let the little ones have their own space for lunch. It’s not quite as intimidating as going into the lunchroom with the older students, so that’s been really nice,” Schuster said. “Plus, some of the equipment is suited better for them. The salad bars and some of the equipment are a little bit lower.”

Another way the space can be put to use is for Sioux Valley’s before- and after-school programs.

Outside, the tennis court was removed to make room for the addition, and the school lost the basketball hoops that were also there.

“It wasn’t used much for school purposes, but I think there is a bit of a void there. We did have some people in the summer who played tennis, but that’s something that we’ve had some discussions with the city,” Schuster said.

But, they have put in a miniature basketball court, measuring 64 feet by 64 feet and equipped with four basketball hoops. Of all the new things the kids have gotten this year, this has been one of their favorites, according to second grade teacher Nancy Heylens.

The playground also now has night-time lighting that’s been installed.

Most teachers in the school had to change rooms as a result of the new addition. That’s because to go along with the new addition, the administration thought it’d be a good time to reorganize where classrooms were located so as to improve flow and keep elementary grades together, and the same for middle school and high school classes.

Heylens, who has been a teacher at Sioux Valley for about 24 years, was one of the teachers who moved into a new classroom in the addition.

“It’s been a very positive adjustment. We knew where we were going with it, so all the hard work is paying off once we’re all settled in and the kids come. Once the kids come, things just settle in magically,” Heylens said.

She’s happy to have the new multipurpose room in particular.

Weather was periodically an issue during the construction process beyond the previously mentioned concrete work. Roof leaks that had happened just before the start of the 2017-2018 school year took all of their attention for some time.

“We had some classrooms that had some water damage, and that did probably prolong it by maybe three weeks because our focal point then had to be getting those classrooms in working order before school started,” Schuster explained.

Parents and students had the opportunity to see the new space before the first day of school, which was Aug. 22. On Aug. 20, the school had its typical Back-to-School night, and tours of the new space were given. Then a few days later, on Aug. 24, members of the public had the same chance during an open house.

The two comments that Schuster heard again and again were “What a beautiful facility” and “It’s a lot bigger on the inside than it looks from the outside.”

And although this addition accommodates the school’s current needs, there’s room for further growth, if need be.

“Throughout the building, we do have that potential,” Schuster said. “Right now, some of the different services probably have more room than is absolutely necessary, but as long as we have the space, we’re able to spread out a little bit. As we add more sections, they may have to give up a little of that space, but as long as we have it, we’re going to utilize it and maximize the space.”

Contact Eric Sandbulte at esandbulte@brookingsregister.com.

Register photos: 

Above, after a year of construction, Sioux Valley elementary teachers and students have moved into the new addition and are making it their home. There were 11 classrooms added through the $3.2 million expansion project, as well as a multipurpose room and new principal’s office. Pictured, Sioux Valley first-grade teacher Emily Hesby teaches her students a bit of math in one of those new classrooms.

Below, although the additional teaching space is one of the most significant parts of the expansion project, there has been plenty of work outside the school building, too. One of those outdoor improvements was the construction of a small four-hoop basketball court, a welcome addition after the old hoops were taken down to make room for the school building’s new elementary addition.