PRSD to Welcome Back
More than 4,560 Students

2008-2009 School Building Start Times
2008-2009 Activities Calendar

Pine-Richland School District will welcome back more than 4,560 students as it opens its doors on Wednesday, August 27, 2008. From June until now, the district enrolled nearly 200 new students into the district.

Students in grades four through six will be proud to start the new school year in a new building as the district opens Eden Hall Upper Elementary School. The community is invited to an official dedication program scheduled for November 2.

The planning and design of the 189,000 square-foot school began more than four years ago. Although Eden Hall is a large building with a capacity for more than 1,200 students, the academic space was designed to provide an intimate learning environment. The building is divided into two communities to promote a team-teaching concept. Within each community are two neighborhoods that are made up of grade level houses of four classrooms with common collaborative space. Space is provided for speech and language services, special education, computer laboratories and foreign language instruction in an area central to the classroom neighborhoods.

·  Exploratorium with retractable seating for concerts, science fairs and art displays

 

·  Walls, countertops, carpeting and accents throughout the school feature colors representing the Earth's five biomes -- aquatic (dark blue), desert (tan), forest (dark green), grassland (light green) and tundra (light blue) emphasizing the district’s elementary science program

·  Pitched roofs, curved corridors, varying ceiling heights and large windows help make the structure feel smaller and help children identify their section of the building

·  Natural lighting throughout the building via skylights and windows

·  Non mow-able grasses on the grounds and heat reclaiming devices as well as lighting and heat sensors to save energy costs

·  Classroom design in outdoor areas (amphitheater, retention pond and walking trails)

 

·  Security features which include an enclosed main entrance, a separate entrance for buses and drop-off & pickup area for parents and surveillance cameras

 

 

District wide, security has been upgraded for the new school year. Pine-Richland Middle School and Pine-Richland High School now have a new control system, which includes magnetic locking doors, camera systems and proximity card badges for employees. 

 

Other new items at PRSD for 2008-2009 include:

·         Introducing World Languages in sixth grade

·         Providing electives for eighth grade students

·         Purchasing new fitness equipment for middle school students

·         Adding additional coaches as the football program moves to Quad A

·         Adding girls field hockey and boys volleyball as fully-funded interscholastic sports

·         Improving the district’s technological network, while replacing teacher laptops

·         Facilitating “Classrooms for the Future” grant for year three

·         Repairing the parking lot at the middle school and stadium

·         Replacing lockers and improving hallways and cafeteria areas at the middle school

·         Continuing improvements at Richland Elementary

·         Replacing the high school stage floor and stadium field house tile

·         Undergoing feasibility study on expansion of the high school

  

When it comes to communications, the district is unveiling a new high school guidance website before the start of school. This virtual guidance site will provide parents and students more information on graduation planning, academic enrichment opportunities and college preparation.

 

To further strengthen communications, parents will receive an electronic newsletter at Eden Hall Upper Elementary School, Pine-Richland Middle School and Pine-Richland High School this year. Parents at Hance, Richland and Wexford elementary schools enjoyed the new communication tool last year, following a pilot study.

The Pine-Richland School Board is able to offer all of these new programs and features while balancing the district’s budget without a tax increase for the fifth year in a row. The proposed final General Operation Fund Budget for the 2008-2009 School Year includes $62,257,796 in expenditures and total revenues of $60,472,618 with an unreserved designated fund balance of $1,785,178 for capital projects. The millage rate remains at 20.20.