Wallingford Swarthmore School District News

Kindergarten Classes Returning To Neighborhood Schools

January 24, 2012 by admin

: Kid’s Place Kindergarten Will Be Split Up

The Wallingford Swarthmore School District has announced that beginning with the start of the 2012 – 2013 school year this September, kindergarten classes will shift from the centralized Kid’s Place location at the Swarthmore Rutledge school in Swarthnore, to the three local elementary school locations.

Some of the reasons cited for the change were: greater continuity of instruction, the ability to experience a K-5 education in one location, students developing a familiarity with the building, staff, and community at an earlier age, and one less transition for young students.

Space will be available at the elementary schools to accommodate the change due to the completion of the Wallingford Elementary School expansion, as of the 2012-2013 school year start. Nether Providence Elementary School will have space because of the relocation of a Delaware County Intermediate Unit program to Swarthmore-Rutledge School. The district also hopes to realize financial savings through reduced transportation and facility costs

Starting in the fall the kindergarten program will be longer by 10 minutes. Morning sessions will run from 8:45 a.m. — instead of the current 8:55 a.m. — until 11:30 a.m., while afternoon sessions will run from 12:45 p.m. — they currently begin at 12:15 p.m. — until 3:30 p.m.

Wallingford Real Estate – Wallingford, PA 19086

Pieces Of The Past Forming a Tribute

October 4, 2011 by admin

Wallingford Real Estate - Arch From Nether Providence High School

Nether Providence HIgh School Archway

Key remnants of the former Nether Providence High School, which was demolished in 2010 as part of the $54 million dollar Middle School renovation, are forming the centerpiece of a tribute garden to former school.

The large front archway, several sandstone medallions, and education themed gargoyles make up the memorial which stands just to the left of the entrance to the Strath Haven Middle School Wallingford Real Estate - Nether Providence High School Date Stone , close to the spot they once occupied.

The design, cost, and location of the memorial has been a topic of much school board debate. The tribute was initially planning to incorporate the key pieces into a memorial wall, but the structural requirements of that proposal exceeded the budget for the project.

Several important features of the former school were salvaged, and stored while plans for the tribute were debated. The Nether Providence High School closed in 1984 when the Nether Providence and Swarthmore school districts merged forming Wallingford Swarthmore School District. The former high school then became Strath Haven Middle School.

On October 21, 2011, at 1:45 PM a public dedication ceremony at the Strath Haven Middle School on Providence Road is planned for the tribute garden.

Nether Providence Elementary School Overhaul Plans Unveiled

August 2, 2011 by admin

Nether Providence Elementary School

The Wallingford Swarthmore School District currently has one major renovation and expansion project underway at Wallingford Elementary School, but the design team behind the project is already looking ahead to an overhaul of another district facility.

Architect Kevin Godshall, a partner in Godshall Kane Architects LLC, of Ambler, presented the Wallingford-Swarthmore School Board with his firm’s vision for the future of Nether Providence Elementary School at its July meeting.

The proposal calls for tearing down a 1939 wing at the Nether Providence Elementary School located on Moore Road, retaining sections that came later and constructing an addition at the rear. The addition would sit on part of the current parking lot, and would reduce the number of parking spots from 150 to 76.

A major goal of the project would be to upgrade classrooms to about 800 square feet to accommodate modern day educational standards, and would also entail keeping separate bus and parent drop-off areas, leaving the playing fields intact, adding a service road on the north side of the building, and incorporating renewable energy features, such as geothermal heating and cooling.

Reynolds Construction Co., who has served as the district’s contractor for the Wallingford Elementary and Strath Haven Middle School projects, estimated the Nether Providence Elementary work would cost about $16.5 million, $5.8 million for the school addition, $5.7 million for renovation work, and $3.6 million of other costs.

A tentative schedule calls for work to commence in the summer 2013.

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S. Clark Kendus