New elementary school,
gymnasium will be ready
School officials say
construction is on target
for first day of classes

JACKSON — As new classrooms and bright colors bloom inside the new Elms Elementary School, district officials are confident the building will be ready to open in September.

Construction is progressing on schedule and the project is nearing completion, Superintendent of Schools Thomas Gialanella said. It will open for the first day of school on Sept. 8 and a dedication ceremony is planned for Sept. 30.

"We’re certainly looking forward to the first day of school, when this new facility will come to life with the sounds and smiles of our students," Gialanella said.

Elms Elementary School is one of four construction projects approved in a 2002 referendum that asked voters to approve building a new elementary school, a new high school and gymnasiums at two elementary schools. The referendum also provided for money toward the purchase of land for a new middle school if and when one becomes necessary.

Elms Elementary School

"I continue to be impressed by the progress we are making and the quality of the work being done at the Elms Elementary School," Board of Education President Michael Hanlon said. "I’m sure the community will be pleased that we are opening on time as well."

Crews have completed work on the bathrooms and hallways and continue to lay tile in some areas. The entire second floor of classrooms has been turned over to district custodians for a final cleaning and waxing of the floors.

The interiors of most of the first-floor classrooms have been completed as well, and work is progressing on common areas, such as the library and offices. Final paving of the parking lot and driveways will also be completed in coming days.

Elms Elementary School is named for former Superintendent of Schools Edward Elms and his wife Georgia, who was a principal in the district. It is also named for Mr. Elms’ parents, who were lifelong educators. The school is at 780 Patterson Road on land donated by the Township Committee in 1998.

Holman gymnasium

The students and staff at Holman Elementary School will have a project of their own to dedicate this fall — a new gymnasium. Construction is nearing completion and the gymnasium will host its first class on the first day of school, Gialanella said.

"The students are extremely excited about this," Holman Principal Jeanne Pollock said. "The opening of this gymnasium is going to make for a very special year for them."

Crews this week are completing the installation of the gym floor and moving on to installing the bleachers, which were delivered this week.

Switlik Gymnasium

"Anyone who has driven by the Switlik School in recent weeks has seen quite a bit of activity," Gialanella said. "Between the county project to widen the road and our site work, we are making good progress."

The original plan called for building the Switlik gymnasium at the same time as the Holman gymnasium, but plans were postponed for a year to allow Ocean County engineers time to begin a project that would widen Veterans Highway.

The county-funded project to widen the road includes building a storm water retention basin that can handle the runoff from the new gymnasium at no cost to the Board of Education.

Plans for the Switlik gymnasium are virtually identical to the Holman project, although additional site work is needed at the Switlik School. This summer, a new bus loop and parking lot will be built and operational prior to the start of school. Once completed, construction of the new gym will start.

"We anticipate being finished with the new Switlik gymnasium before the end of the 2003-04 school year," Gialanella said.

New high school

Gov. James E. McGreevey helped the district break ground on its new high school just last month.

"This is an important project for the entire Jackson community, and we will be sure to keep the public informed as to our progress," Gialanella said.

Middle school land

The final appropriation included in the 2002 referendum was to purchase land for a future middle school if and when one becomes necessary. The board is researching acquiring property adjacent to land the Township Committee recently agreed to donate to the district if and when it needs it. These parcels are suitable for a middle school.

"Basically, the Township Committee has agreed to hold that land open for us until we decide whether we need it," Hanlon said. "It is certainly a generous offer and is another example of the committee and the Board of Education working together for the benefit of the entire Jackson community."

Hanlon said he intends to reconvene a Future Directions Committee to revisit what is necessary to meet the needs of the growing district.

"These current projects are vitally important to us now, but we need to continue to plan for the future," Hanlon said. "It’s time to pull this committee together again and determine our next steps."

Hanlon said he will be discussing the make-up of the new Future Directions Committee with board members in coming weeks.

The last Future Directions Committee researched the district’s future needs and developed a recommendation to the board after considering demographics, construction projections, firsthand observations and the budgetary limitations of the district.

The recommendation was to build five schools in five years — the first of which was Crawford-Rodriguez Elementary School, which opened in 2001, followed by Elms Elementary School and the new high school. The committee’s recommendation also included building another elementary school and a third district middle school.