As many schools are wrapping up their academic years and cheering the arrival of summer break, Benton Township’s Countryside Academy is rejoicing in the completion of their new elementary building. To celebrate, the Southwest Michigan Regional Chamber will be hosting a ribbon cutting on Friday, May 24th at 9:00 a.m.
The $9-million project officially kicked off in October of 2022, which saw a celebratory groundbreaking for the new facility located at the Meadowbrook campus. The new space will serve as home for nineteen (19) Young Five through Fifth grade classrooms, plus the K-12 cafeteria where breakfast and lunch will be prepared and served to all students on-site. The previous main campus, located right next door, will become home to Sixth-Twelfth grade classrooms.
Prior to the new elementary building being built, students were split between two campuses, Meadowbrook and Millburg. The new building will allow for staff and students to be all in one central location, while the Millburg facility transitions to a new Tri-County Head Start center.
“There were multiple factors that led us to building the new elementary school, but the largest one was simply that we ran out of space for additional students,” says Sarah Brookshire, Countryside Academy’s Lead Administrator. “Another factor was the ability for all staff and students to be at one central location versus a five (5) mile separation between them.”
“Thirty years ago, the founders of Countryside Academy had a vision to create a school that taps directly into the agricultural roots of southwest Michigan. Twenty-seven years after first opening we celebrate and applaud those founders, the dedicated staff, and the families who continue to enroll their students in Countryside,” says Arthur Havlicek, President & CEO of the Southwest Michigan Regional Chamber.
Located on 120-acres the Meadowbrook campus features an aviation CTE program, ponds, woods, a stream, gardens, and the Agriculture Resource Center which includes a state-of-the art barn and greenhouse.
To learn more about Countryside Academy and their F.A.R.E. (Food. Agriculture. Renewable Resources. Environmental) theme based learning visit www.CountrysideAcademy.org.
