The door were opened in August. North Canton City Schools replaced and combined the previous five schools with new primary [pre-K through 2] and intermediate [grades 3-4] schools through a March 2020 bond issue. By combining
five schools into two schools, it means that there are twice as many people in each building.
Miss Carla Carper is a fourth grade teacher at the North Canton Intermediate School. She says this is one of the biggest changes of her career, but feels good about it. Most students in the North Canton City School district didn’t meet all of their classmates until sixth grade, but these new schools have changed that.
“Just knowing the fact that we have twice as many people that are going to be there to help support kids, and be advocates for these children, I like the fact that all of our students from the entire district are together with their classmates,” she said.
Since there are double the people in the intermediate school, Carper is making connections with new people.
“There’s so many people that I’ve never talked with before, I don’t know who they are that were from Greentown that I’m able to see their teaching styles and have so many more ideas in one building,” she said.
Scarlet Mann, a kindergartener at North Canton Primary School has a favorite aspect about her new building. “My teacher,” she said.
In addition to the great staff, their are new accomodations to embrace the evolving field of education. The new schools have a new space which is an extension of the classroom in the hallways for a more peaceful workspace.
“One of my favorite areas that we have is called a CLA space, it’s called a common learning area,” Carper said.
Mr. Tim Walker, North Canton City Schools Director of Development and Special Projects, believes the new spaces are good for other things as well.
“The new buildings provide great open spaces for collaborative learning and student engagement,” he said.
Carper also appreciates the small aspects of her classroom that make the days brighter.
“I have a window,” she said. “In my years of teaching, I’ve never had a window in my classroom, so seeing the outside makes life just a little easier.”
Walker likes seeing windows in the new buildings as well. “Personally, I would say that walking into buildings that are open with lots of daylight really changes the feel of a building,” he said. “These buildings are also very accessible for all people which was certainly a goal from the beginning. Our architects from Sol Harris Day listened well to the staff and steering committees in designing buildings that met these needs.”
Mrs. Megan Mann, mother of kindergartener Scarlet Mann, has a specific detail that impresses her the most about the new schools.
“There’s a resource officer at every school, which makes me feel that the kids are safe,” she said.
The most recent buildings are only a part of Phase I. This is what North Canton should expect for Phase II. “Phase II of the Facilities Project involves the construction of a new middle school and renovations to the high school,” Walker said.
“While the design specifics for these projects will be decided at a later date by steering committees, the goals will be similar to Phase I. We will look to create engaging spaces for collaborative learning while emphasizing safety and accessibility. We will also continue to strive for operational efficiencies that will allow us to provide the best education to our students.”
With the knowledge of Phase II, Mann intends to vote in favor of Phase II. “I think it’s going to be positive,” she said. “I think it’s importantthat our kids have up to date stuff the best we can.”
Carper loves the new schools and thinks Phase II will be beneficial.
“Not only is it motivating students, but it motivates the kids to want to come to school too,” she said.
Walker thinks these buildings are helping prepare future students.
“Preparing our students for tomorrow is not just about the subject matter, it also requires us to prepare our students for the world in which they will live and work,” he said. “Learning how to work with others in a collaborative environment is one of the greatest skills we can teach. Our new buildings give our outstanding staff the opportunity to teach content but also to teach collaboration and teamwork which will prepare our students for tomorrow.”
Scarlet Mann attended preschool at the old building but is now in kindergarten at the new building. She has a very strong opinion on the new school compared to where she was.
“It’s way better,” she said.
Walker is also impressed with the results and the benefit to the students, staff and community.
“Overall Phase I of the project went great,” he said. “We built two great buildings on a tight time schedule with a lot of hurdles in terms of supply chain. Hammond Construction did a great job of anticipating issues and getting out ahead of those issues to keep us on track. In addition, we moved from five buildings to two buildings with two of the old buildings needing to be demolished. There were certainly a lot of moving parts and we are still working out some issues but overall we have schools that our community can be proud of and that serve our students and staff well.”
Mann didn’t attend school in North Canton but she knew she wanted to send her kids here for many reasons.
“We wanted a district where we felt we were going to be safe in, that the education was going to be good, so we looked at grade scores and proficient scores,” she said. “We wanted a district that we felt like our kids would get a good education and be safe in as well. [My daughter] loves it and she [is] happy too, which makes me happy.”
