TOLEDO, OH (Toledo News Now) - It's a brand new school year, and some students are roaming the halls of brand new buildings at a couple Toledo schools.
Whittier Elementary School received renovations this year. Previously, students were housed in two separate buildings, meaning kids and staff had to trek back and forth between the two. That's now a thing of the past.
School leaders say one feature of the new Whittier is permanently locked doors all around the building. At the main entrance, visitors must be buzzed in.
In the new wing of the school, there's a brand new, fenced-in playground. Seventh and eighth grade students are excited to each have their own lockers this year, as well.
The new science lab is expected to be put to good use by all grade levels now that teachers don't have to walk their classes between buildings to get to it.
Principal Eric Remley says the most important thing the renovations bring to Whittier is unity.
"I think the students really feel like they are a part of one entity," Remley said. "For a long time we would have to send out a lot of different material that said Whittier West and Whittier East, and I think because of that, the students and the teachers felt a separation, and no longer will they feel that separation."
Arlington Elementary also underwent renovations over the summer.
