WARSAW — On Thursday, Dec. 17, 2015, Warsaw Community Schools held a groundbreaking ceremony for what would come to be an entirely new Lincoln Elementary School. A little over a year later, Dec. 21, was the last day for students at the current Lincoln Elementary School.

At the time of the groundbreaking, WCS Superintendent Dr. David Hoffert expressed, “Warsaw Community Schools is excited to start the construction on the new Lincoln Elementary. Schools are a cornerstone of our local community. The construction of Lincoln Elementary will provide a safe and appropriate learning environment. We are grateful to our local community for allowing this opportunity to assist in moving our schools and community forward.”

The new building has been underway next door to the current facility, and after the students’ Christmas break they will be resuming classes in the new building. Teachers’ classrooms have been packed up in boxes and still line the hallways waiting to be moved.

The classroom section of the building is two stories high, with kindergarten through third grade on the first floor and second through fifth grades upstairs. First- through fifth-grade classrooms will share collaborative learning areas, which teachers will be able to open between adjoining rooms and rooms across the hallway.

The kindergarten rooms do not include collaborative space; instead, extra restrooms have been installed, with two classrooms each sharing a set of restrooms. This, Project Supervisor Jim LeMasters has previously said, was at the request of the teachers.

“Everything is an upgrade from what we have now and everybody is looking forward to moving in,” he said. “They don’t have much now. Not that they don’t use it and use it effectively, but they don’t have much.”

The new building also features a STEM lab, a large gymnasium with a stage area and a new solar panel. The main entrance and office space will have up-to-date safety features.

Once everything is moved into the new building, demolition will begin on the old one and the space will be turned into a parking area.

The current location, 203 N. Lincoln St., Warsaw, was opened in August 1959. The new building will bring Lincoln Elementary up to par with the other seven elementary buildings in Warsaw Community Schools.

Kids will resume school at the new Lincoln Elementary after break.