Community School

Located right across a county highway from the YMCA Camp St. Croix, community use was an important consideration in the design of River Crest Elementary School. The playing fields will be used for little league and soccer. The YMCA will use the playing fields and classrooms for summer programs and the building for refuge during severe storms. An underpass was constructed to permit safe access between the school grounds and the YMCA and links the trails at Camp St. Croix to the paved walking/bike trail that winds around the entire 43-acre school site. This trail passes through existing woods and open prairie restoration that promote habitat and bio-diversity and serve as an outdoor learning environment.

The community will be welcome to use the gymnasium and other core facilities after hours. The corridors to each of the classroom wings can be locked to limit access, while the art and music rooms, gym, computer lab, media center, cafeteria and bathrooms remain accessible. The cafeteria has a platform which is used for daily dining as well as the occasional plays, performances and School Board meetings.

School Age Child Care is a program that operates before and after school as well as through all vacations and is based in the cafeteria which has an adjoining room to provide a kitchenette, storage, and desk space for the program. The cafeteria has an entrance that leads directly to the parking lot that is locked for the security of the children and provided with a doorbell. The program includes daily field trips to Camp St. Croix.

The gymnasium is provided with a climbing wall, as well as the usual basketball and volleyball courts and, in good weather, the students can also run/walk on the trails.