Steele
By GAVIN STEELE, guest columnist
Van Buren Elementary School is nestled in the southern hills of Brown County and is one of three elementary schools within the school district.
Our building’s district map includes students and families within roughly 90 square miles of the county’s 312. We have 260 preschool through fifth grade students that attend Van Buren. This unique part of the county is home to students from families who have attended Van Buren Elementary for multiple generations as well as those who have moved to the area to enjoy the quiet, rolling landscape and its natural surroundings. As such, many of our students and their families enjoy the outdoors.
While attending school at Van Buren Elementary, students are nurtured through a variety of educational opportunities. Outdoor classroom space sits beside Pleasant Valley creek for a change of scenery. Large, green, tree-lined fields with plots of flowers and gardens invite inquiry as well as an opportunity to run and play.
Students and families here are accustomed to looking out for one another and helping where they can. They engage with their school as the center of its township, the place for children to grow and learn, whether through its robust parent-teacher organization or our growing community partnerships. As the heart of the community, Van Buren Elementary School is also the focal point for many community activities. Traditionally, facilities are used throughout the year for family reunions, child and adult sports and recreation activities, 4-H meetings, and as a meeting place for scouting troops.
All students at Van Buren Elementary School are encouraged and challenged in a variety of ways so that they may develop their full potential before crossing into the next township to attend middle school. Key strategies used to realize this development include students setting and tracking academic goals through targeted reading initiatives, cross-curricular initiatives and opportunities for STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) instruction wherein students participate in designing and creating projects in our state-of-the-art science lab using the engineering design process.
Some current happenings at Van Buren Elementary include academic competitions in math and science as well as Spell Bowl. Fourth- and fifth-grade students also have the opportunity to compete on our Vex Robotics Team. The robotics team travels to area competitions and competes with and against teams from our region.
There is so much to do and learn at Van Buren Elementary School! We look forward to growing our family.
If you or your child would like to tour our school or register for kindergarten, please contact our front office staff to arrange a time. Call us anytime at 812-988-6658.
I would like to take this opportunity to spotlight the amazing staff “family” at Van Buren: Jennifer Dunn, Mica Selby, Darlene Radloff, Alyssa Daffron, Jill LaGiglia, Emily Gaither, Kortney Fowler, Tina Robertson, Michelle Wagers, Piper Bowser, Heather Sawyer, Abby Magner, Annette Fields, Michael Brown, Makenzie Duncan, Heather Ferguson, Heather Reeves, Sarah Cochran, Sarah Forest, Christina Cook, Angel Deckard, Jenna Fox, Cheree Johnson, Cindy Keller, Tina Payton, Pam Walters, Thomas Bartlett, Haley Downs, Kim Hathaway, Robyn Back, Leah Hiatt and Brandi Slaymaker.
A special thank you to our community partners: Ben Miller Trucking, CJ Logging, Dinsmore Trucking and Septic Services, REMC Jackson County, Brown County Highway Department, Maxim Crane Works, Brown County Tire and Auto, IU Health, Southern Brown Volunteer Fire Department, Payne Farms, Rumpke Waste Services, Brown County Sheriff’s Office, Mainstream Fiber and Cummins.
Gavin Steele is principal of Van Buren Elementary School. He can be reached at [email protected].
