The school playground is an important place in any child’s life. It’s a place to escape classwork, make friends, and work off the restless energy built at the desk. The students at St. Stanislaus School were buzzing with excitement on Friday when the school’s new playground was unveiled to the public.
“The students are just thrilled,” said Principal Angelica Foy. “First and foremost, it will provide a safe, secure place for them to play, and it will provide for them an opportunity to interact with their peers in a way that fosters teamwork and collaboration.”
Previously, the school took students outside for recess but didn’t have a dedicated play space for the kids, something the students were hoping to change.
“In the past, we had a parking lot that we used for the students to play and have recess in,” said Foy. "There are only so many ways you can play tag in a parking lot. I had students the year before last write persuasive essays on anything they would want to persuade the principal on, and an entire class wrote persuasive articles trying to persuade us to get a playground.”
The ribbon cutting was attended by over 100 members of the St. Stanislaus Community and the students were eager to break in the new play space. The multipurpose area, designed by James Zmuda of EAZ Technical Solutions, is going to provide a new learning environment in addition to a relaxing space.
“When we created the space, we were trying to keep in mind that we have students from preschool to eighth grade,” Foy said. “The playground includes three sections. It has a big play structure, but it also has a section with picnic tables for older students or for kids who want to read. Teachers can take their classes outside for instruction, reflection, or for science class. The third section is an open area of grass where the kids can play tag or soccer.”
St. Stan was selected as one of five Catholic schools selected for a grant from the Dean and Barbara White Family Foundation to build a playground. In addition to this grant, St. Stan received a second grant from the Foundations of East Chicago.
“Our partners with Big Shoulders Fund shared the good news with us that we received a grant for the play structure from the Dean and Barbara White Foundation,” said Foy. “We thought about logistics, such as the fencing in areas or picnic tables, so we also reached out to the Foundations of East Chicago. They have been wonderful partners with us over the years and they were able to also give us a grant that afforded us the ability to not just put a playground but to make it a multipurpose area.”
After the ribbon cutting, students were given free rein to break in the new playground. Foy was ecstatic to see the immediate impact the new space had made.
“I am so excited to be able to oversee this to help our students, and we've had a lot of support,” she said. “I am beyond proud of our school and all the people that worked together to make this dream become a reality. Just to have something like this is a true blessing. Our students will forge wonderful friendships and memories here that they will cherish for years to come.”
St. Stanislaus School is a pre-K to eighth-grade school in East Chicago. To learn more about the school and the educational opportunities offered, visit www.ststansec.org.
Big Shoulders Fund is a not-for-profit organization supporting educational opportunities in Chicago and Northwest Indiana. To learn more about its Northwest Indiana chapter, visit bigshouldersfund.org/our-programs/nwi.
