Only 13 miles separate Greer and Red Hill, but they seem worlds apart. Both schools serve over 50% economically disadvantaged students, but while Red Hill serves fewer than 200 students, Greer has over 600. Greer has over 75% minority students. Red Hill is 78% white. Red Hill is thoroughly rural, Greer is situated snugly in the urban ring. For many families at either school, the elementary school just a baker’s dozen miles away might as well be a different world.
Greer sits on a large school acreage with Jouett Middle and Albemarle High Schools. From the parking lot, Greer doesn’t look huge, but navigating the interior can be like deciphering a maze. Greer’s wings and halls are described with continent labels, so students and parents can remember if they should go to Europe or Africa to get to the appropriate classroom. Even though traipsing through the halls as a visitor is confusing, when you are standing in one wing with one grade level, it can feel cozy and manageable. The fourth grade classrooms, for instance, all open into a shared space with a sink and small work area. It would be easy for the entire grade level to feel like one cohesive unit with that floor plan.
Despite an addition less than 3 years old, Greer is over capacity. Multiple redistricting plans have been suggested, but other schools in the urban ring are similarly crowded, and transferring students further out into the county to Murray or Broadus Wood would likely cause those schools to become over-capacity in just a year or two, and result in redistricting in another few short years. There do not seem to be any easy solutions to the county’s capacity issue.
Greer’s 2013 addition includes a beautiful art room, with high ceilings, and plenty of natural light. Similar to other schools, Greer’s new addition incorporates inner courtyards which allow students to have ready access to outdoor classrooms. The new art room opens out onto a concrete slab, adjoined with grass and mulch. Contained by exterior walls of the various wings and viewable through windows, teachers can allow students flexible use of this interior/exterior space.
As I wrote in my Jouett post, Greer serves many students who were relocated with their families to the Charlottesville area by the International Rescue Committee. 33% of Greer’s students are English Language Learners. Because of the large number of ELL student, there is no way that Greer could have separate ELL classrooms. English Language Learners are in mainstream classrooms and ELL teachers push into classes and occasionally pull students out for one on one and small group instruction.
Of the schools I have visited Greer seems the most full (granted I visited a goodly number before school was in session). In every hallway there were tiny to mid-sized, adorable humans on their way to some class or activity. The cafeteria was full of humans of every hue eating in harmony. Hallways were filled with books and workstations. It felt like every inch of the building was a hive of activity.
