Time to Reimagine Learning

Our children will return to school full time this fall after an extremely challenging year of remote and hybrid learning. The silver lining, however, is they will have four new elementary schools, including the beautiful Evergreen Elementary and Hugh McMillan Community Center. Like many of you who helped pass the school bond that built Evergreen and the other new schools, I take pride in what our community has been able to accomplish together.

Evergreen specifically was completed a full year ahead of the original schedule that was promised in the 2019 bond. The Peninsula School District capital projects team doubled down on the time kids were not in buildings to move construction schedules ahead. As anyone in the building industry can attest, we are doubly fortunate, as the recent spike in construction costs could have put the projects at risk if the original schedules had been maintained.

Now that we have these new facilities and resources, our district has a rare opportunity to reimagine learning by bringing more real-world programs, like hands-on, project-based learning into our schools. I encourage our school district to maximize use of these new flexible meeting rooms, covered outdoor areas and shared spaces for our community. In addition, they should strengthen outside relationships with local businesses and organizations, many of whom are ready and willing to engage with students.

The district should not miss this chance to reset and reimagine learning, and to truly make our schools the center of our community.

Jennifer Butler, Gig Harbor

Candidate, PSD School Board