An inclusive playground at Parkside Elementary opened in mid-October, providing students with a space that accommodates a range of abilities and encourages play for all, according to Superintendent Dr. Kristen Weikle.

Parkside has four specialized services classrooms and is the only Unit 5 elementary school with special education level 3 services, an intensive, individualized support system for students with significant needs.

Many of those students, Weikle said, have mobility issues. 

Parkside Elementary Principal Chris Ellis was “more than happy” when the new playground was announced, as it would allow all Parkside Penguins, regardless of “physical limitations,” to play together.

Parkside had “wanted a playground which [the special services students] could play on and play side-by-side and with their peers,” Ellis said.

Since opening in mid-October, students, Ellis said, can “play inclusively with everyone at our school.”

The addition features equipment that targets “motor, sensory, problem-solving and social skill development,” Ellis said, a design that intentionally omits climbing areas.

Demand has been high. Administrators have had to limit how many students can use the new area at a time, Ellis said, “because everyone wants to be on the playground.”

Previously, some students “weren’t really able to get on [the previous playground] and enjoy it,” Weikle said. “Now this is handicap-accessible playground equipment, so it’s all inclusive to all body types, students, etc.”

There had been a need for an inclusive playground for “many, many, many years,” Ellis said, so“there was no school more deserving than Parkside to have a playground in which all students could play together.”

The playground was funded through revenue from the 1% sales tax that took effect in July, with the district collecting the first installment in October toward a projected $9 million this school year, with roughly $1 million earmarked for student-focused facility projects.

Additional facility updates include investment in real-time energy monitoring at both high schools and three junior highs by January. Those improvements, Weikle said, will let the district show the community its energy savings.

Weikle said she expects the school board to consider additional facilities projects at Normal Community in the next month or two, including work on the student parking lot and a proposal to resurface the track next summer, “which is a huge project.”

About 66% of the overall revenue will go to abating property taxes by paying down bonds issued to build Cedar Ridge Elementary, Benjamin Elementary and Evans Jr. High, Weikle said.

The district will allocate $1.5 million to safety, security and mental health, including offsetting the cost of school resource officers, counselors and social workers.

Unit 5, Weikle said, spends “way more than a million on those salaries,” but the added revenue will help.

A full report of the sales tax revenue allocations is available on the district’s transparency dashboard.