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Open house at new Peralta Elementary sparks excitement for students & parents
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PERALTA — The outside areas of the new Peralta Elementary School are not yet finished but that didn’t seem to matter all that much to most of the folks who attended the schools’ open house on Thursday, July 31.
Even the slight glitch that kept the event from starting on time and had parents and students waiting out in the hot sun couldn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the nearly 300 people who attended.
There’s plenty to be impressed by in the brand-new two-story school, which includes a sizable gymnasium with its signature jaguar mural adorning the east wall, a hand-painted piece of art designed and painted by students from Century High School’s art program, led by teacher Amanda Gonzales.
Jaxon Wagenblast and his mom, Emily, are among the many who pause and look at the many features in the new school. Jaxon, a sixth-grader this school year, was impressed.
“I like it. It’s cool,” Jaxon said. “I like the library. I just like how big it is. It feels bigger because of those ceilings. My mom said the ceiling’s taller, and that makes the room feel bigger.”
Emily grew up in Peralta and attended the old Peralta Elementary, which was the second version of the school to be built.
“Honestly, I think I would have liked more color — the walls are kind of stark, but I think it’s gorgeous,” Emily said enthusiastically. “It’s just amazing. Thinking about how he spent the last two years in a portable, it is leaps and bounds ahead.”
Principal Pam Golliheair said getting past the three-year construction process to this day was quite a ride.
“It feels like the light at the end of the tunnel,” Golliheair said. “We faced so many challenges and obstacles teaching and learning in the middle of a construction site, but you know it just shows what perseverance does and that we’re all here together.”
Gollihear said the many steps and adjustments that had to be made during construction were a lot of effort. As the new school began taking shape, she said the time was well-spent.
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“I think I was in (the school) March 13, and then I came in again in May, and just like seeing it all come together. It’s so much for your eyes to take in at one time,” she said. “With this building, you know, new is great, but it’s hard to let go of the old building.”
To kind of soften the blow of leaving the beloved old building behind, Gollihear said Los Lunas Schools director of facilities, Tiffany McMcminn, and architects from Bradbury Stamm Construction made sure to take art from the old buildings and incorporate it into the new structure.
“That was a big deal for us and the community,” she related, “but when you get in, you’re able to come into school with all of these features. The technology is huge. It just makes your job easier and where you can get more in-depth with it and increase the student’s education experience.”
Fifth-grade teacher Theresa Moya has been at Peralta Elementary for 21 years and wasn’t quite ready to let go of the old school and school grounds.
“It’s a really nice change, though,” Moya said. “After going through the construction and surviving all of that, this is really nice. It’s just a beautiful school. It’s definitely bigger than the one I was in the past two years.”
Some things are familiar, like the Smart Boards that come with each classroom. There are other amenities that will help, such as the microphones that are attached to teachers’ lanyards and amplify their voices in the classrooms.
“For me, I think it’s deer in the headlights,” Moya said, “because there’s so much, and it’s two-story, and there’s a wing (for kindergarten). I’ve been sort of still absorbing everything. It’s all just so nice, and the technology is really nice.”
Gollihear understands tearing down the old Peralta school “did break a lot of hearts,” and she has empathy for “people and their memories.”
“Because when you’re seeing a building going down, it’s not just a building going down for many,” she said, concluding that she thinks the community overall supports replacing the old building. “They want the kids to have progress and have the best of everything, and it’s heartfelt, right? There’s the bittersweet feeling.
“I think this gives a lot of people pride and happiness to know their kids have a beautiful school with all the best in it. I believe it puts people’s minds to rest thinking about our youth who are coming up or getting a wonderful education in a building that they deserve.”
