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Excitement, kids overflow at Chiles ElementaryBy SUSAN THURSTON
© St. Petersburg Times, TAMPA PALMS -- Newly built Lawton Chiles Elementary School opened this week with sparkling furniture, unused books -- and crowded classrooms. About 785 kindergarteners through sixth-graders packed the two-story building on W Tampa Palms Boulevard, gracing the halls, classrooms and cafeteria for the first time. Chiles was one of five new schools in Hillsborough County. The others are McKitrick Elementary in Lutz, Alonso High in Town 'N Country, Oak Grove Elementary in Tampa and Symmes Elementary in Brandon. "It's just great to be able to start from ground zero," said Chiles PTA president Kim Gilmore. "I think people are pleased and surprised at how good the school looks." Many parents said being part of the inaugural class added to the excitement of the school year, which began Wednesday for public schools. "It's nice to be in a new facility," said Lynn Zaris, whose 10-year-old daughter, Rachel, attended Tampa Palms Elementary last year. "They've made it very special." The $9.3-million school was built to ease crowding at Tampa Palms, Pizzo and Clark elementaries. It also will house some of Benito Middle School's sixth-graders until a new middle school opens in 2002. "We're glad to be out of portables," said Doug Cress, whose son, John, went to Tampa Palms. On Tuesday, children and their parents had a chance to visit their classrooms and meet their teachers. "We're a very popular place," assistant principal Kim Pietsch said. Maybe too popular. Several of the first- through fifth-grade classes were too crowded. A few were expected to top 40 students and one fifth-grade class listed 52. The district recommends that kindergarten through third-grade classes have 24 or 25 students per teacher, said Tom Dessy, Chiles' principal. Fourth- and fifth-grade classes should have 29 or 30. School officials said they would add classes once they had the final counts and they can determine how many students have moved or changed schools since the classroom lists came out. The school has space for 905 students but had a projected enrollment of about 950. Dessy said the school has enough space to handle all of the students, even with the sixth-graders temporarily taking up several classrooms. The district has an employee pool that will provide more teachers. "With us being a brand-new school, the challenge is a little greater," said Dessy, who came out of retirement to lead the school. "But we're off to a good start." And it helps that teachers generally look forward to starting a new school from scratch. "I've got this grin that hurts my muscles," said fifth-grade teacher Rita Gonzales, who came from Tampa Palms. "I'm like a kid in a candy store. We just have everything we could possibly need." Crews were putting the final touches on the classrooms this week. Some were still awaiting televisions and computers, and rain delayed installation of the playground equipment. "You have to be a little flexible," said teacher Abby DePue. "Things are trickling in." Still, parents applauded the teachers and school administrators for being well organized and enthusiastic about the coming year. Few spoke of past efforts to make Chiles a satellite of the high-performing Tampa Palms, although some are unhappy that the attendance boundaries extend several miles to the University of South Florida. "I'm kind of worried about her taking the bus," said Melissa Diaz, whose 6-year-old daughter moved over from Pizzo, which is closer to their home. The trip to Chiles takes 25 minutes, she said, making it impossible for Diaz to drive her daughter to school each day. "It's going to be hard for the first few weeks," she said. - Susan Thurston can be reached at (813) 226-3463.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
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From the Times |
