At the start of the 2018-19 school year, the Rise School of Corpus Christi moved into a new, much larger building.
On Thursday morning, the school held a ribbon cutting ceremony, officially marking a brand new start for their students.
The Rise School of Corpus Christi is the city’s first and only school dedicated to teaching students with and without disabilities. Students, regardless of their abilities, are taught in the same classroom.
However, for 12 years, the school was sharing a space with other organizations.
Now, they have a new 10,000 square foot building to call their own. The old building, was much smaller at about 3,000 square feet.
Krystle Grines, a teacher at the Rise School, says students, parents and teachers like her are all excited about the big move.
“I love the new space,” Grines said. “I love that it’s big, it’s our own, and it’s just awesome to have.”
Currently, 30 students attend the new and improved school. The building was built specifically for children of all needs.
The new facility is ADA compliant, so there are wide halls and doorways large enough for wheelchair accessibility.
There are six new classrooms set up for integrated learning. Outside, there’s an inclusive playground that is also wheelchair accessible. It’s the only inclusive playground for early childhood education in Corpus Christi.
Teachers are also bringing the classroom outside. Soon, there will also be a learning garden, where kids can plant their own fruits and veggies.
“It’s such a great transition coming to our own building that is made especially for all of us and the kiddos in the classroom,” Grines said.
Regardless of a student’s background or abilities, all the students at the Rise School of Corpus Christi are taught to rise and shine. Just ask parents, Jan and Rob George who have a 4-year-old son who attends the school.
“The diligence of the teachers here have helped him learn how to walk,” Rob George said. “And he’s learning how to speak, he’s learning sign language.”
But most importantly, children are learning kindness toward one another.
“They don’t call them classmates here,” Amberlee Allee said, another parent of a student at the Rise School. “Everybody is friends.”
Of the six new classrooms, only three are open and available to use. It will cost $225,000 to open and use another classroom.
That’s where you can help. The school is asking for donations of any kind, monetary or other. Click here for more information on how you can help.
