Elliott Street

NPS Announces Opening of Two New State-of-the-Art School Buildings

New Elliott Street and Oliver Street School first newly constructed buildings in district since 2010

 

[Newark, NJ – November 24, 2015] – Newark Public Schools (NPS) along with the School Development Authority (SDA) is proud to announce the opening of two new state-of-the-art school buildings in 2016 for Newark’s school children. The buildings are a new Elliott Street School and new Oliver Street School, and represent a collective $120 million-dollar investment by the SDA.  Under construction since 2013, these are the first two newly constructed facilities in the school district since the completion of the new Speedway Avenue Elementary School in 2010.

“Thanks to the School Development Authority we are proud to announce the opening of two new state-of-the-art buildings for the Elliott and Oliver Street school communities that will better serve our students,” said Christopher Cerf, Superintendent of NPS. “These modern buildings will create a first-rate educational experience for our city’s school children, allowing them to learn and grow in a 21st century learning environment.”

The new Elliott School building, located at 721 Summer Avenue, will feature brand new facilities, including specialized instruction classrooms, labs and media centers. The new building will be substantially larger than the current Elliott Annex with 138,000 square feet, 40 classrooms and will be capable of serving approximately 850 students in grades PK through 8. In addition, the building has a separate cafeteria, gym, and multi-purpose room with a stage. A time-lapse video of the new facility being built can be found here.

“Elliott School parents, students and teachers could not be more excited about this new facility,” said Roger León, NPS Assistant Superintendent. “For several years, our community has been having conversations about how to best utilize a new building for our kids, and it is very gratifying to finally see it come to fruition.”

The new Oliver School building, similar to Elliott School, will provide its students with state-of-the-art services. Located at on the west side of the existing school at 86 Oliver Street. it will be 137,000 square feet with 40 classrooms and will be capable of serving around 850 students. This building will also provide access to a separate cafeteria, media center, and gymnasium and will have the added benefit of being the first new school building constructed in the East Ward in 104 years. A slideshow with images of the new facility can be found here.

“Our community eagerly awaits the completion of this new, modern building,” said Douglas Petty, principal of the Oliver Street School. “Our students will soon have access to a high-tech facility that will enhance the educational environment in all of their classrooms and make them ever prouder to be at our school.”

These two buildings are the culmination of years of extensive planning and collaboration by school community leaders. These buildings represent a new standard for facilities in the district that NPS leaders hope to build upon in coming years.

In addition to these two projects, the district is also planning a construction project at South St. School, which is planned for completion in fall of 2018, and recently completed arrangements with a design company.

NPS Teachers Awarded for Excellence

Governor’s Recognition Award

These eight individuals stand out as top staff members in their schools based on their ability to inspire students of all backgrounds; foster a strong student learning environment, demonstrate leadership in educational activities; and are dedicated to the school and community. These are not just teachers but also our education service professionals who work closely with our children.

  • Jessica Allen a teacher from Quitman Elementary
  • Glenda Capers a teacher from BRICK Avon
  • Josephine Cooper – a Social Worker from Quitman
  • Lucinda Lopez – a teacher from First Avenue
  • Melissa Milara (Ramirez) a teacher from Miller Street
  • Alberta Shiavo a teacher from John F. Kennedy school
  • Deborah Sims a Behavioral Specialist from John F. Kennedy school
  • Hilda Soto-Yao a teacher from New Jersey Regional Day

School Teacher of the Year Award

These teachers were nominated as the top teacher in their school based on their individual accomplishments and contributions in the classroom as well as for their leadership. Not only do these teachers consistently exhibit preparedness and instructional excellence, but they also take on formal and informal mentoring and leadership roles to broadly improve the quality of education at their school.

  • Marisa Alves, from Lafayette Street School
  • Andrea Arguello from South Street
  • Tammy Chavez from Ann Street
  • Nicole Coppola from Park Elementary
  • Deirdre Corley from Hawthorne Avenue
  • Whitney Farrand from Mount Vernon
  • Lisa Fischman from Harriet Tubman
  • Angelisa Guilford from Lincoln Elementary
  • Michelle Gutierrez from Abington Avenue
  • Stacy Guzman from McKinley
  • Stephanie Hairston from Chancellor
  • Nicole Harris from Hawkins Street
  • Sadiqua Harvard from George Washington Carver
  • Natasha Javed from Camden Street School
  • Celia Laricchia from East Side High
  • Cristano Liborio from Science Park High
  • Matthew Lichten from Ridge Street
  • Susan Lopes Oliveira from Wilson Avenue
  • Melissa McSweeney from Elliott Street
  • Jessica Morais from Oliver Street
  • Kariema Muhammad from Belmont Runyon
  • Sean Nally from Barringer Arts and Humanities
  • Teresa Oliveira from BRICK Avon
  • Marcela Palma from Miller Street
  • Anany Rodriguez from Luis Munoz Marin
  • Kimberly Rubenstein from Rafael Hernandez

Special congratulations to District Teacher of the Year recipient, Edith Battle. She is a teacher who exemplifies the highest level of excellence and is a true example for all other teachers in the district.

Elliott Street Elementary School Students & Dignitaries Sign New School’s Steel Beam

Elliot Beam Signing Ceremony from Ron Scott on Vimeo.

NEWARK, NJ – New Jersey Schools Development Authority (SDA) CEO Charles McKenna joined Newark students and school district and local officials for a “beam signing” ceremony to highlight the progress of construction on the new Elliott Street Elementary School. The students, teachers and officials celebrated the ongoing construction of the facility by signing steel that will be hoisted into place as a permanent part of the new facility.

“Every project milestone brings us one step closer to providing a new community school for Elliott Street Elementary School students,” said SDA CEO McKenna. “Being here today with the kids and together signing steel that will become a lasting part of this school for generations to come is symbolically important. These students are making a permanent mark on a building that will provide countless educational opportunities for its students.”

Located in the North Ward, the new 138,000 square foot Elliott Street Elementary School is being built on the site of the former school which was demolished following fire damage caused by a lightning strike. For several years the student population was divided among three building sites, however since September 2011 the students have been housed at the former First Avenue School. The new school will provide 848 students in Pre-K through eighth grades with 30 general use classrooms, four kindergarten classrooms, six pre-kindergarten classrooms, specialized instruction classrooms and labs, a media center, separate cafeteria, gymnasium and a multipurpose room with stage.

“It is exciting to see the progress for what will be a new home for all of Elliott Street Elementary School families,” said Superintendent Cami Anderson. “Every student deserves a modern 21st century learning environment, and today’s beam signing reflects another step forward to realizing 100 excellent schools in Newark.”

The school is being built using a design-build approach. Hall Construction Company of Howell, NJ is the design-build contractor, working in partnership with Paulus, Sokolowski and Sartor, LLC of Warren, NJ. The project is being managed by Gilbane Building Company, of New Brunswick, NJ. The total estimated project costs are $46.7 million.

The SDA has invested more than $562 million in completed projects in Newark. This includes 11 capital projects and 121 Health and Safety/Grants/Emergent Projects. In addition to the Elliott Street School, two other new school construction projects are ongoing in Newark – Oliver Street School and the South Street School.

The SDA’s current portfolio of active projects is valued at $2 billion – including the Capital Project Portfolio (more than $1.5 billion), emergent projects ($100 million) and Regular Operating District grants ($430 million state share).