Grant completes St. Marguerite school

Intermountain Catholic

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Architect's rendering provided by St. Marguerite School.

TOOELE — The lower grades of Saint Marguerite Catholic School were looking forward to moving to a brand-new building this year, while grades four through eight were facing another 10 years in the church basement before the school could be expanded to accommodate them.

However, with a grant announced last week, the expansion can begin this year so that in the 2012-13 school year all the classes will be in the new building.

"Our school has followed the same track as Catholic schools did 100 years ago – the classrooms are fitted into every nook and cranny of the church basement," said Father Sam Dinsdale, St. Marguerite pastor. "But now we’ve been given this opportunity because of the generosity of our parish – the parish first decided that we were going to build an education center and school – and then Sam Skaggs came out and he was impressed by our parish and the work that’s been done, so he gave us an amazingly generous grant to help us complete our plan."

The parish and school began the building project more than five years ago, said Marcella Edwards-Burden, principal; the capital campaign needs to raise $250,000 to complete the pledges.

The new grant from the L.J. Skaggs and Mary C. Skaggs Foundation will allow the completion and furnishing of the first phase of the project, as well as the second phase, which now includes a library and science lab as well as classrooms for grades four through eight.

"We never even envisioned being able to do a library, conference area and science lab," Edwards-Burden said. "That began only through the generosity of Mr. Skaggs. His gift to the school will help us complete the building at least ten years ahead of schedule and allow grades pre-K through 8th to be in the same location, with state-of-the-art facilities. A library is critical not only for our accreditation but for student learning, and a science lab is like the whipped cream on top."

Currently, the school library is divided among the classrooms, with the books housed by grade level.

Design of the second phase already has begun; the hope is to submit the plans to the city planning process in September. The additional classrooms, which will be over 700 square feet each, will adjoin the existing school on the west side.

The new building will be used by the parish’s religious education program as well as children enrolled at the school. The school has 150 students; there are about 120 children in religious education program. The parish already has a large gym and kitchen.

The psychological benefits of having classrooms with windows are great for both students and teachers, Edwards-Burden said. In addition, the new building will have secure access to the classrooms and a bathroom for the staff.

The new building will be a witness to the community because now people can actually see the school, Fr. Dinsdale said.

The first phase of the new school building broke ground last September. It consists of six classrooms, offices, a reception area, and bathrooms as well as a multipurpose area that can be divided into two classrooms.

The building, which will be named the Saint Marguerite Catholic School and John J. Sullivan Education Center, will be ready for the first day of school, Aug. 22.

"The intention all along was to dedicate the building to Msgr. Sullivan (the parish’s sixth pastor, who served from 1970 to 1982), because he was so instrumental in making this school a reality," Edwards-Burden said.

St. Marguerite officials plan an Aug. 17 dedication for the opening of the first phase of the school.