Berkeley Leader

History is about to be made at two Berkeley County School District schools this week.

Berkeley Elementary, which was technically a primary school, will welcome third, fourth and fifth-graders this upcoming school year, making it a K-5 school.

Meanwhile, the school building formerly known as Berkeley Intermediate is now named Moncks Corner Elementary, and this school is also becoming a K-5 school.

While it is a big change for both schools, administrators are getting excited about the upgrades and recently shared what all they have in store for students when they return to school in August.

The changes go into effect July 1.

 

Berkeley Elementary

Berkeley Elementary is led by Principal Kelly Gabriel and Assistant Principal Ginger McCoy. 

Gabriel is entering her seventh year at Berkeley Elementary, while McCoy is entering her fourth year. The administrators anticipate about 700 children coming to school in August – an increase of about 100 students. However, Gabriel recalled having more than 700 students at the time when she first came to the school.

“We’re just getting back to where we were six years ago,” she said.

Gabriel said adding third through fifth-grade students allows for some great opportunities for the older students to be the “true leaders” of the school.

“There are a lot of great things that we get to do because we’ve got older children in the building, versus just having K through second – we’re very excited,” Gabriel said.

The first school in Berkeley County opened on Main Street in Moncks Corner in 1912. In 1929, students and teachers needed more space, and the original Berkeley High School building was opened – this building now houses what is formally called the Berkeley Education Center at the corner of E Main Street and S Live Oak Drive in downtown Moncks Corner; the building opened for district employees in 2019 following renovations.

In 1954, Berkeley High found a new home, and the building in downtown Moncks Corner became Berkeley Elementary. Following the 1996-97 school year, the elementary school found a new home off of Hwy 6.

Hallways are getting a fresh coat of paint this summer, and a big project consists of revamping the media center. The school’s librarian has ordered new books, and there will be new furniture to accommodate the “big kids”, plus a new TV and circulation desk.

Berkeley Elementary will offer Gifted and Talented (also called GT) classes, which students are eligible for at third grade. Berkeley Elementary has had pre-kindergarten students before, but this year the school will now also offer Head Start, which is a program for qualifying 3 and 4-year-olds provided by a federal grant that helps families based on income and other criteria.

Gabriel said she looks forward to having students longer and being able to watch them grow to become middle school students.

“We get to make a bigger impact and really see the true growth from kindergarten through fifth grade,” she said.

McCoy added there is also the bonus of not having to split up siblings once the elder reaches third grade and heads to Berkeley Intermediate (which is also becoming a full K-5 elementary school and being renamed Moncks Corner Elementary).

“I think that’s going to be a big positive for the parents – they won’t have to go between two schools for drop off or pick up,” McCoy said.

There will be a lot of returning students in August, but the school is also welcoming some additional students who previously went to Whitesville Elementary; Gabriel said the good news is she happens to be great friends with Principal Katie Taie and believes they will be able to work with parents and give that extra assurance that former Whitesville students are in good hands at Berkeley Elementary.

The change has provided an opportunity for re-branding; as a primary school, Berkeley Elementary has always been the “Fawns”. The school is rebranding itself to be the “Little Stags”; the logo features a young stag with budding antlers.

“We’ve been able to take that opportunity and kind of run with it and re-brand ourselves to fit a true elementary model,” Gabriel said.

In terms of their education, particularly when it comes to reading, primary schools focus solely on those reading and foundational skills. Gabriel said having the upper grade levels will make learning interventions a little easier because teachers will be able to identify learning gaps, and how to best support students, as they transition from second grade to third grade.

“I know that’s always been difficult for intermediate schools is…they’re going based on what paperwork we send them versus really knowing the child really, really well,” she said, adding, “We’ll know where their reading and their math gaps are.”

Gabriel envisions mentoring programs between the upper grade levels and the lower grade levels, having reading buddies, letting fifth-graders have little jobs like helping out in the front office, among other leadership opportunities.

“I’m just excited to have older kids in the building,” McCoy said. “I think it’s going to be a great change for everyone…I think it’s going to prove to be a great, positive change for the school, the teachers (and) the students. It’s going to be a good change.”

Staff members are already planning for ways to incorporate the upper grade levels into pre-existing traditions, like the Book Parade, which is held at the end of every school year and consists of students dressing up like book characters and parading around the car rider loop.

“We’re going to have to adjust it some and…one way we’re looking at adjusting it is maybe having fifth-graders partner up with K-4, and fourth-graders partner up with kindergarten,” Gabriel said. “So they’re reading the book (together) and then they dress up together.”

Berkeley Elementary will carry on with other normal traditions like dressing up for Halloween, participating in Boosterthon events, Spirit Weeks and passing out Valentines on Valentine’s Day.

Gabriel’s goal is to make the school a place where everybody, including the upper grade levels, will enjoy just being children.

“They’re still kids, they’re still babies, and they still need to do those things that make school a great memory – because kids don’t remember tests…they remember their teachers, they remember events,” Gabriel said, “They have plenty of time to grow up.”

 

Moncks Corner Elementary

Moncks Corner Elementary is led by Principal Michael Shaw.

The school building opened as Berkeley Intermediate around 1995. It was allegedly built to be an elementary school but has served as an intermediate school since opening. Shaw became principal in 2008. He has been a part of the district since 1990.

Shaw said the school currently anticipates a student body of about 600 this year – which is about what it was last year. The number is subject to change as it does not include anybody who may have moved into the two new neighborhoods across the street from the school this summer.

Shaw sees this as an opportunity to have a close-knit school community where families get to know each other better.

“I’m looking forward to having fifth-graders read to kindergartners and pre-schoolers, and having the ability to have ‘buddies’ across grade levels,” he said.

Right now, similar to Berkeley Elementary, the school is focusing its efforts on transitioning from a 3-5 school to a K-5 school. The building just received new desks, tables and chairs to accommodate the younger children, and staff is working on moving some classrooms and trying to appropriately set up where the younger grade levels should be located within the building.

The teachers have shown a lot of enthusiasm about gaining the younger grade levels. Shaw had a few teachers who were eager to sign up to teach those younger grades for the upcoming school year.

Shaw has been informed by his teachers that “fun” activities in the school will be multiple.

“The enthusiasm from the teachers has made the transition a lot easier because they are all so enthusiastic about the community, about the excitement of getting to teach what they want,” Shaw said.

In addition to the new grade levels joining the school community, Moncks Corner Elementary will offer two Head Start classes, one CERDEP class and one self-contained pre-kindergarten class. (CERDEP is a state-funded full-day 4-year-old pre-kindergarten program for children at risk of not being ready to start kindergarten).

Similar to Gabriel's predictions, Shaw alluded to the added benefits of making interventions easier as K-5 schools get to know the students longer, and Shaw also noted there will no longer be a bunch of switching between the two schools: his school has offered Head Start for the past several years, but in the past the school had students who were in Berkeley Intermediate’s Head Start classes, moved on to Berkeley Elementary for a couple of years for kindergarten through second grade, and then came back for third grade and onward.

“Within four years, you’d transition three times,” he said, adding that by becoming a K-5 school, there will be “zero transitions.”

Families recently came out to the school for an Open House event in May; this was an opportunity for the rising first, second and third-graders who are coming from Berkeley Elementary to come and check out Moncks Corner Elementary. Shaw said more than 60 parents came out for the event.

While the school is still figuring out the logistics of making the change to Moncks Corner Elementary, Shaw said they are embracing the upgrade to a K through 5 school and getting students ready for middle school.

“Change is good,” he said. “Being responsible for the same group of kids for seven years is exciting because you definitely know where you can push them to.”

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