Students from four Salt Lake City School District elementary schools face a big change this summer. When they come back to class in August, it will be at a new school with a new community.
Now that the ink is dry on the decision to close four elementary schools, affected schools are working to help students through the transition. One of the schools absorbing students is Rose Park Elementary. They recently welcomed 20 students from Mary W. Jackson Elementary for a first-time meet-and-greet visit.
As the Jackson students stepped off the bus and walked through doors, there were choruses of “woah” from those excited about the new environment. Others frowned. One said, “I don’t like this school.” Another said they were scared.
Superintendent Elizabeth Grant has repeatedly said she wants schools to not just welcome students in but to build “new communities.” To make that connection, Rose Park and other schools taking in new students held events before the end of the year. Similar opportunities are slated to happen over the summer.
As they filed into the gym, the Jackson students were introduced to the staff and told about Rose Park. In her pitch on the school library, Librarian Karilyn Frazier told the students they can come in not just to find books but also to learn about computers and take “brain breaks.”
“If there’s some books you really, really like and we don’t have them in the library, will you please let me know and we’ll make sure to get them,” Frazier said.
Like the rest of the staff, Frazier ends with the same message: We’re excited you’re here.
“I promise you’ll love everyone and everyone will love you.”
There were welcome gift bags for the incoming students with a book to take home, information for parents, a water bottle and a snack bag of Takis, a crowd favorite. There’s also a purple T-shirt that everyone, including the teachers, wears on Fridays.
The Rose Park staff tried to get students excited and feel welcomed at the new school, but they didn’t sugarcoat things. Principal Nicole Palmer told the students the transition might be hard.
“It’s OK to feel worry. It’s OK to feel a little strange to leave your school,” Palmer said. “We understand, but we’re going to be here for you next year to help you with anything that you need and help you get used to a new school.”
It wasn’t just talk about the future at Rose Park, staff also gave the students space to talk about Jackson and what they’ll miss. One student said she’ll miss her best friend. Another said they’ll miss their teacher.
The adults in the room nodded their heads and offered reassurances. They agreed it’s hard to lose important people in your life. A peer from the Rose Park student council responded as well. It will be hard to be away from those people, they said, but they will make new friends at Rose Park.
When it came time for the tours, Principal Palmer and another teacher led the future second-graders around. They were introduced to the custodian, shown the Lego wall in the library and visited their future classrooms. Palmer pointed out the line of big, colorful dots outside the classrooms where second-grade students line up.
The Jackson students practiced lining up to prepare for the fall. Then, they headed out to the real highlight: the playground.
“How does this playground feel? Do you like it?” Rose Park teacher Brandy Valdez asked the kids.
“Yeah!” the kids responded enthusiastically as they hung from bars and ran around to explore all sides of the new playground.
Palmer is hopeful about the transition and thinks the kids will adjust quickly.
“I think once kids get a place and they get seen and people pay attention to them, I think they’re going to be fine,” Palmer said.
While Rose Park is used to new kids each year, she said there are still unanswered questions about how this transition will work, especially with bussing and crossing guards.
“I mean, we’ve never done anything like this, so I have no idea exactly how it will go down or even how many kids we’ll end up getting. They said 50 [students],” Palmer said.
Michelle Tapia, Jackson’s school counselor, said it was hard after the district announced the school would close.
“I mean at first, it was not very happy times. Parents were upset,” Tapia said. “But I think people are getting used to the idea. I’ve been at Jackson for 20 years and I’m getting used to it.”
Tapia isn’t following the Jackson kids to Rose Park. Instead, she said she’ll be at Liberty Elementary in the fall. That moves her away from colleagues she’s worked with for years. At first, she was sad to be leaving her community.
“But, change is inevitable sometimes,” Tapia said with a sigh.
Some of the students started off the visit grumpy. But after the tour and time on the playground, there were some smiles. To Tapia, the fact that her students felt welcomed was important. Rose Park students knew the Jackson kids were there and would say “hi” in the halls.
“I think it just all helps,” Tapia said.
