Students, staff, and families will celebrate the reopening of Bancroft Elementary School in Spring Valley (8805 Tyler Street) on Monday, Feb. 26 at 8 a.m.
The school sustained immense damage in the rains and flooding of Jan. 21-22, requiring new flooring in each of the school’s 18 classrooms as well as other flood and water damage repairs.
A massive effort by the school, school district, and contractors will see students and staff returning to their school just five weeks after the damage.
The school will celebrate the re-opening with visits from local police and fire departments, as well as a balloon arch, music, and more.
“We are beyond excited to have our students, staff, and families back at Bancroft,” said La Mesa-Spring Valley Superintendent David Feliciano. ”The past five weeks have shown the tremendous heart, determination, and cooperation of our LMSV community, including school and district staff, local contractors, as well as local, state, and federal authorities, all working together to get our students and staff back at their school as quickly and safely as possible.”
Students return From norteearby metroiddle school
For the past five weeks, students and staff have been learning at Spring Valley Academy, a middle school just over a mile away from Bancroft. “We are so grateful to the SVA staff and students for opening their campus to us,” said Nathan Saucedo, principal of Bancroft Elementary. “In the midst of a difficult season, they have provided us a warm and friendly place to learn as well as to process the experience of being displaced from our school. Their heart and spirit could not have been bigger.”
Even as the damage was being assessed the La Mesa-Spring Valley School District team was jumping into action, securing space and transportation to Spring Valley Academy and connecting families to resources available to those affected by the floods. They were also working with contractors to make needed repairs to get students and staff back to their school.
Massive repairs Completed quickly
Dr. Robert Cochran, director of Business Services & chief safety officer for La Mesa-Spring Valley Schools noted, “Our Facilities and Maintenance and Operations Teams definitely have the #LMSVHeart. They had one thing at the top of their minds, and that was getting students and staff back to campus as quickly as possible and the team was able to do just that.”
The cost of the repairs will largely be covered by insurance, with state and federal funds being made available to cover the rest.
“We talk a lot about the heart of this district,” added Feliciano. “And situations like this go beyond mere words to show what #LMSVHeart looks like in real life. We are fortunate to have a kind, generous, and resilient community supporting our students, staff, and families and we are looking forward to this celebration.”
