The district recently unveiled a completely revamped playground in the heart of the elementary school campus. Kindergarteners helped cut the ribbon in front of a large crowd of members from the community, before a mad dash ensued to the enjoy the new equipment.

“For the kids here, it is amazing. It’s going to bring the community here for generations,” Pine Valley Board of Education Vice President Joshua Howard said.

The project came “full-circle” for Howard and Superintendent Bryna Moritz, who each played on the Pine Valley school playground as kindergartners.

“It makes it all worth it. It’s the reason why we do this work,” Moritz said. “All the months of planning ultimately culminated into something beautiful that will help our community for a long time.”

The Pine Valley Central School District recently held a ribbon cutting for the new elementary school playground now open to the community.

The playground was funded by American Rescue Plan Act and the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act funds made available to the district, which were set to expire within the next year.

Moritz described how students and teachers watched through the windows of their classrooms throughout the school year as the equipment was put together.

“As it was going up, seeing our students and teachers who were cheering the guys on when they were putting the butterflies up in the windows made every single hard moment completely worth it,” Moritz said. “This is something that we wanted to make sure we left something that was sustainable, even after the money was gone.”

The whole project, including designated spaces for all ages from infants and pre-kindergarten students at the district’s innovative UPK center, through elementary school, ended up less than $1 million in total cost.

“We wanted to incorporate spaces for all learners,” Moritz said. “We really tried to focus on all ages and make the playground accessible for everybody.”

Pine Valley Superintendent Bryna Moritz, left, and Board of Education Vice President Joshua Howard, right, spoke at a ribbon cutting of the district’s new playground located at the elementary school.

Another focus on the design was special shades designed to shelter guests from the elements as they play.

“One of the things we really focused on is, a lot of us have been elementary school teachers – and many of us are parents – and when you’re sitting out there in the hot sun on a playground, it’s nice to have some shade and not worry about your kids getting sunburned; to have somewhere you can sit and relax while the kids play,” Moritz said.

Through community input, the district acted quickly to construct the playground within a year’s time.

“It was all about the stakeholder input — getting their insight into what they wanted, what the kids needed, and what the teachers thought would be beneficial to them — and just making it come true,” Howard said. “From a Board aspect, we’re here to support them. If that’s what they want, let’s move forward with it.”

The playground is not gated, except for a specific area designed for toddlers and infants, and is open to the public. The community was welcomed to the ribbon cutting that also featured music, a food truck, electric bus rides, and face painting – which Moritz participated in, with a rainbow painted on her cheek.

“It took a team approach. Often, you work on a project, and different stakeholders feel differently about it and everyone has a different opinion,” Moritz said. “Putting in a playground like this, in the center courtyard of our building, no one had a different opinion. Everyone had their heart and soul going into this to make sure it was perfect. I think that’s how you end up with something like this — everyone rallied around a cause for kids.”