Vose Elementary Dedication Ceremony Held On Oct. 6

BEAVERTON, OR — School district officials joined Mayor Denny Doyle and Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici Friday to dedicate the newly rebuilt Vose Elementary School in east Beaverton. Vose Elementary is one of four schools to be demolished and rebuilt thanks to a $680 million bond approved by voters in May 2014. Three all-new schools will also be constructed as part of the bond.

The dedication ceremony took place at Vose Elementary, 11350 S.W. Denney Rd., beginning at 8:30 a.m. Oct. 6.

Vose Elementary opened in September, at the beginning of the 2017-2018 school year, according to Beaverton School District (BSD) spokeswoman Maureen Wheeler. During construction, students and staff spent the 2016-2017 school year at a temporary location in the Timberland neighborhood.

"We are grateful for the community's support and passage of the $680 million bond in 2014 that made these and hundreds of other repair and renovation projects possible in most all of our schools," Wheeler said in an email to Patch. "In all, there will be seven new schools in the Beaverton School District."

Previously noted for its Two-Way Language Immersion program, Vose was rebuilt specifically as a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) school. Sato, Hazeldale, and William Walker elementary schools will also be built with the same prototype design, Wheeler said.

"The old school was never built to serve nearly 700 students," Wheeler explained. "It had nine portables. It was outdated and not very functional from an instructional standpoint. It was a school in the round, with odd classroom shapes. (And) it lacked appropriate gym and cafeteria spaces."

Measured at 87,200-square-feet, Vose can now serve up to 750 students across 32 classrooms. The new school also includes a stage, dividable gym, and nine additional teaching areas, including a specific teacher area in the library, Wheeler said. An open house, which will include tours, is scheduled for Oct. 26 beginning at 6 p.m.

"Architects have learned so much about school design and what works for optimal student learning," Wheeler said. "First, it is much larger facility. Natural daylight is predominant throughout the new Vose. The new Vose Elementary is a beautiful new asset to the surrounding neighborhood. Beaverton School District has not recently built or rebuilt schools in the core of the District's service area.

"With the growth the District has experienced in the last 25 years, schools have been built in the north area such as Bethany," Wheeler continued. "The next big growth area is in the south of the District — in the South Cooper Mountain area where our sixth comprehensive high school, Mountainside, was recently completed and opened to 9th and 10th grade students."

The $185 million Mountainside High School, located at 12500 S.W. 175th Ave., celebrated its grand opening ceremony Sept. 23 — the same morning as the groundbreaking ceremony for Hazeldale Elementary.

This post has been updated to include additional comments from BSD spokeswoman Maureen Wheeler.

Photo Courtesy: Beaverton School District