After 17 months of building and preparation, the big day finally arrived on Thursday, April 24, as the new Union County Elementary School held its official ribbon cutting, opening its doors to the community for a look inside before the facility goes into use this fall on Beasley Circle.
Though the outside certainly looks majestic in its own right, the interior of the building is a sprawling testament to modern design. Natural lighting brightens much of the new UCES; skylights serve as the ceiling over most of the hallways, and many classrooms – and staff rooms, for that matter – are decorated with ample windows.
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Members of the High School DECA Club participated in the proceedings that day, serving as greeters and handing out agendas and fact sheets. After the initial program, they also acted as tour guides around the building and pointed guests to where they needed to go.
The ceremony itself was opened by UCES Principal Jerry Bavero, who welcomed all in attendance to an “incredible day in Union County.”
Met with applause, Bavero revealed that the goal of the new facility ever since its groundbreaking on Nov. 16, 2023, was to create a school that was “more than just a building.”
“We dreamed of a place where students would feel safe, inspired and excited to learn,” Bavero said. “Today, as we look around, we see that dream brought to life in this beautiful new building.”
There were a handful of notable faces in the crowd, including State Rep. Stan Gunter, Sheriff Shawn Dyer and even Avis Shaw, whose land was purchased in order for the school to be built. As a matter of fact, Shaw also spoke as part of the presentation.
“You’re always going to have children – I hope we’re always going to have children – and we’re always going to need a school and a place to educate them,” Shaw said. “See, this school is so beautiful. I have enjoyed seeing it go up.”
Superintendent John Hill said the project started when the Board of Education identified a need for a new facility. The goal was to complete the building without debt, and Hill revealed that, indeed, even by its completion, construction ran under budget and ahead of schedule.
Measuring in at 114,000 square feet and housing 67 classrooms, the debt-free facility cost $36.3 million. It has enough space to hold 1,200 students at a time, and the building was designed to be easy to add onto as the county’s population expands, with an expected lifespan of 50 to 75 years.
“The teachers that I had in elementary school, I can tell you, made a lifelong impact on me,” said Board Member Julia Barnett, voice breaking as she detailed how educators made her feel smart – and she believed them, thus believing in herself.
“I can only imagine how many little lives that (staff) are going to influence positively in this beautiful new building that we have,” added Barnett.
Keynote speaker Scotty Jarrard, a local preacher, drew attention to the power of the penny, pointing to how the voter-approved E-SPLOST paid for the project in its entirety.
Like Barnett, Jarrard gave voice to how his elementary school experience changed his life forever, making him into the person he is today.
This included everything from humorous memories of mundane patterns used by teachers to instill learning to the death of a classmate in a tragic farming accident. Through these, he learned to value his community, and he hopes the same will ring true for Union County’s youngest generations.
“That’s why I’m here today, because this community cared for me, and now it’s my turn to care for it,” he said, addressing the students in attendance. “Your superintendent, your school, many teachers in your school, are the dividends for the investments that were made a long time ago.”
Jarrard continued, promising the little ones that they are the very future by saying, “And you know what? There’s one thing that I want you to hear from me: I believe in you. I believe you’ve got what it takes.”
Between the words of Jarrard and Barnett, several audience members shared in their tears. They also enjoyed the other speakers of the day, including Georgia State Facilities Director Michael Sanders, Douglas Breaux of Breaux & Associates Architects and C.J. McDonald of Charles Black Construction.
Then came the promised ribbon cutting, which was itself cut into two different ceremonies to represent the two groups at the forefront of everyone’s minds when it came to UCES’ conceptualization and realization.
First, the elementary students to be named as the first class to grace the new halls had their own ribbon cutting. A line of eager youngsters stood behind a fittingly purple ribbon before severing it with oversized scissors made even more apparent in tiny hands.
Then, school leaders such as the Board of Education, Bavero, Hill and even those who helped make the building possible like Sanders, Breaux and McDonald, had the opportunity to cut their own ribbon – also purple, in the spirit of Union County’s Panthers.
Afterward, everyone was invited to walk the new halls, exploring everything from the classrooms to the administrative cubbyholes, from the bathrooms and art room to the gym and cafeteria.
Though empty, the rooms are set to fill up quick; move-in started the day after the ribbon cutting, and classes will begin there this August.
