A USD 383 Manhattan-Ogden school has reached the century mark.
Woodrow Wilson Elementary School on Thursday evening will commemorate 100 years of teaching and learning with an open house. The school will let the community see the new addition of a gymnasium and a storm shelter at the celebration.
“On the 100th day of school, we had a little celebration just with our kids,” Woodrow Wilson principal Daniel Simon said. “... We had some activities for the kids in the gym. For our open house, we’re opening up the school for our community to come in.”
Thursday’s open house will feature food trucks, old photos of the school through the years and a chance for former students to see how much the building has changed since they were there.
“I think it’s a good opportunity for people to come back and reminisce and see the school and how it’s changed over time,” Simon said. “I know a number of things have been updated and renovated and added onto. The school has changed as time has changed. The community has been a very good supporter of the school and the school district, of course. And so we hope to celebrate a century of learning and growing together as a community and as a school.”
Before there was Woodrow Wilson Elementary, another school stood on those grounds by Leavenworth Avenue. The old Central School was Manhattan’s first public school, built in 1877 with eight rooms.
After Central School fell into disrepair, the city tore it down and rebuilt it as the school known today as Woodrow Wilson Elementary. Its construction cost $75,817.
Simon said a bond issue passed in the 1920s paid for Woodrow Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt elementary schools, which opened the same year. Theodore Roosevelt Elementary held its 100th anniversary celebration in October.
According to Simon, Woodrow Wilson Elementary almost took the name Amanda Arnold Elementary to honor the first teacher who taught Central School.
“The school board had already decided on the name Woodrow Wilson Elementary, so Amanda Arnold wouldn’t get her elementary school named after her for another some odd years,” Simon said.
In 1983, USD 383 opened another elementary school on Hudson Avenue and named it after Arnold.
When Woodrow Wilson Elementary opened in 1924, it had an initial enrollment of 460 students, with class sizes over 40.
The Amanda Arnold archway, which used to be the entry to Central School, now stands at the Courthouse Plaza to memorialize Arnold and all the early pioneer teachers.
Today, Woodrow Wilson Elementary has about 200 students because fewer families now live close to the downtown area.
“Over the years, the building has been added on to five times,” Simon said. “We had a storm shelter added on that just opened up this year.”
Simon said the storm shelter was supposed to be ready by the start of the 2023-24 school year, but work took more time than expected, leading to some reorganization.
“We had to do P.E. in the computer lab for a couple classes while we adjusted but we made do and now it’s open,” Simon said.
Before the expansion, Woodrow Wilson Elementary had a gymnasium that doubled as a cafeteria and assembly space. The new addition allows it to have separate spaces for a cafeteria and a gym.
“This school has had a reputation for excellence for a long time, and so it’s obviously produced tremendous benefits to the community in the number of students it has produced,” Simon said. “The very first school in Manhattan would have been right here on this piece of property, so this has been the epicenter of education for Manhattan since the Central School opened in 1877.”
