MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- Young students eagerly walked through the halls of the newly built school facilities signifying the beginning of the 2017-2018 school year at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, Aug. 30, 2017.
Two elementary schools, one for kindergarten to second grade and the other for third to fifth grade, and the middle school, for grades six to eight, were officially opened and put to use for the first day of school.
“It is an exciting time for all of us as we take part of this historical moment for our school,” said Arturo Rivera, principal of Matthew C. Perry Elementary School. “The beginning of the school year is always one of the busiest times for us as we prepare for the school year. This year is especially significant because, not only do we have to get ready for the school year, but we also have to set up the new school.”
There are several differences between the new facilities and the old ones. The schools are now located by Torii Pines, are indoor campuses, have new technology, equipment, rooms and more.
The new school facilities have been setup to benefit the students, faculty and staff. They are also capable of taking in more students as the MCAS Iwakuni population increases.
“It is an important part in the quality of life for service members and their families to know that their children will have a state of the art facility where they will receive a top quality education,” said Rivera. “The schools play an important part in the community servicing military children. They ensure that we are ab le to support the community as it grows in the near future.”
Iwakuni Middle School has seen many challenges from staffing to getting the bell system to work. But Principal George Mann believes that faculty and staff’s positive attitude and work ethic have created an optimistic work environment that will lead to a very good school year for the students.
“Initially there was a lot of apprehension and uncertainty,” said Mann. “The community doesn’t really know the teachers, and we faced a few hiccups and issues. But the teaching staff is excellent and has helped us get off to a great school year.”
Mann added that the importance of a middle school is what makes all the effort worth it, and that the students will be the ones who benefit the most.
“Our goal is to help the children transition to becoming young teenagers, a time in their lives that will be filled with uncertainty,” said Mann. “Middle school provides an environment that helps with that transition. It provides an opportunity for education to target and assist that age group.”
Overall though, parents reported that the move to the new facilities was not difficult and that the schools have done a good job of keeping everyone informed.
“The transition has been great,” said Thelmo Santos, a station resident. “They’ve been diligently providing us information through emails – where to go, what to do – trying to make the transition a little easier for everybody. They’ve been preparing us since last year.”
Even Catie Corella, a parent who recently moved to the air station, praised the schools for the way they look inside and out, and for the way they helped her set up.
“It was a little confusing because we’re new here,” said Corella. “But all in all, everyone has been very helpful and everything has gone very smoothly. The schools are amazing and top-notch. They are full of everything that you can possibly want for a student.”