Glendale and Jeffers Pond open playgrounds for kids of all abilities
Glendale Elementary in Savage and Jeffers Pond Elementary in Prior Lake cut the ribbon this week on new playgrounds built so students of all abilities can play together, Glendale on Monday, Oct. 19, and Jeffers Pond on Wednesday, Oct. 21. Both are Every Buddy’s Playgrounds, a Prior Lake-Savage Area Schools initiative that adds smooth, flat surfaces for students with mobility needs and adaptive equipment, so students in special education and general education can play together at recess.
The two school communities raised more than $259,000, the district says. At Glendale, more than $142,000 came from local businesses, families and community organizations, including more than $40,000 the school’s parent teacher committee had set aside over several years. At Jeffers Pond, where the effort started three years ago when students asked why everyone could not play together on the playground, families, the parent teacher committee, local organizations and businesses gave more than $117,000.
Supporters the district thanked include the Lions and Rotary clubs in Prior Lake and Savage, the Prior Lake Optimist Club, the Prior Lake VFW and the Laker Educational Foundation. Redtail Ridge Elementary in Savage and Five Hawks Elementary in Prior Lake are next, and both school communities are raising money for theirs now.
What's next: Later improvements are planned at Hamilton Ridge and La ola del lago, the district's project page says. The page takes gifts through each school's parent teacher committee, the Laker Educational Foundation's Laker Impact grant, or a check to Prior Lake-Savage Area Schools with Every Buddy's Playground in the memo.