The Littlewood Elementary School campus buzzed with activity Friday morning, but the busyness wasn’t because of a school day. 

Students, teachers, staff and alumni joined Alachua County Public Schools (ACPS) representatives, School Board of Alachua County (SBAC) members and construction officials inside the multipurpose room for a ribbon-cutting ceremony, marking the completion of a nearly $37 million revitalization project at the Gainesville school.  

“The turnout here [today] is a testament to the incredible community support that surrounds Littlewood,” Principal Justin Russell said while giving remarks, adding the school was built in 1959 and has been home to thousands of students and families. “You’ll see the building today and how it’s refreshed. But what really makes Littlewood special are the people, the culture and the history. And that still remains intact.”  

The $37 million project was funded by the half-cent sales tax, which Alachua County voters approved in 2018. The tax provides the school board with the necessary funds to improve existing schools around the county. 

“That’s why we’re able to do what we’re doing today,” Interim Superintendent Kamela Patton said. “So, to our community, thank you for that.” 

The process of revitalizing Littlewood’s campus dates to September 2023. 

“That was part of like that early planning process,” Chad Jones, a managing principal with PBK Architects (formerly Harvard Jolly Architects), said in an interview with Mainstreet. “We did visioning exercises with not just the faculty, but also the community. We came back a little bit later – when we were further into the design process – and we showed them the renderings of what we thought it was going to look like. And I think we pretty much accomplished what we set out to accomplish.” 

Because the campus was occupied, Jones noted that Parrish McCall, the company that oversaw the project, didn’t actually begin construction until May or June of 2024.  

The building process, Jones said, included demolishing the oldest part of the campus, which consisted of eight buildings he referred to as “classroom pods.”  

“They were in pretty bad shape, so we basically replaced those,” Jones said.  

Additionally, Jones said upgrades had to be made to the existing plumbing and mechanical systems.  

“There’s very little that we didn’t touch [on campus], especially in the old buildings,” he said.  

While crews worked to make improvements to the campus, Littlewood teachers and students were moved to portable classrooms for the 2024-25 school year. Those classrooms were located at Westwood Middle School’s campus, which is less than a mile from Littlewood.  

Russell thanked faculty members and families for their patience and flexibility in working through the transition last year, while also noting that through the uncertainty, the school was able to earn an A grade. 

“We made it work by sticking together [and] finding creative solutions and problems [that] we didn’t know we were going to have – all while putting students first and doing what’s best for kids.” 

After the ceremony concluded, attendees had the chance to tour the campus with leaders who played a part in the project.  

Nick Anschultz is a Report for America corps member and writes about education for Mainstreet Daily News.