Doyle Elementary School will undergo a seven-classroom expansion and playground renovation project this summer designed to centralize grade levels and provide dedicated instructional space for specialty teachers.
Doyle Elementary School Principal Melea Johnson said the new construction is located near the existing playground area and will allow the school to house second through fifth grades together for the first time. Johnson said the addition provides the building with necessary flexibility for spaces that are currently in high demand.
“Next year, it’s going to be able to house, we’re going to move second grade down, so that’ll put us grades two through five all together for the first time,” Johnson said. “So it’s going to give our building some flex for spaces that we desperately need right now.”
Johnson said the project includes the construction of a new walking track that will serve both the student body and the local community. Johnson said the school playground also functions as the Doyle City Park, making the improvements a joint effort between the school system and Doyle.
“It was a mutual decision with the City of Doyle,” Johnson said. “They are great working with us, and so they actually, our playground is actually the Doyle City Park as well. So it’s a joint effort between the school system and the City of Doyle.”
Johnson said the expansion is not intended to reduce class sizes but rather to ensure that “encore” or specialty teachers no longer have to share classrooms. Johnson said three of these teachers currently share a single room and will each receive their own dedicated space once the seven new classrooms are complete.
“I’ve got three encore teachers that are having to share a room right now, and so they’re each going to have their own space moving forward,” Johnson said. “It’s seven individual classrooms. It’s not seven additional teachers.”
Johnson said the school is still determining specific playground upgrades as officials evaluate funding from student fundraising and allocations awarded to White County. Johnson said the school has seen its enrollment fluctuate between 300 and 315 students over the last few years.
“Teachers are going to be able to plan more efficiently because they’re all going to be grouped together and work vertically with each other,” Johnson said. “So like second and third grade will be together, so, you know, if a second grader moves up to third grade, they’ll be able to know the students better and be able to know and talk to each other and plan accordingly.”
Johnson said the new layout will also improve the student experience during class transitions because grade levels like the third grade, which are currently spread throughout the building, will be grouped in the same area.