Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Wisconsin District Breaks Ground on New Elementary School

  • By Matt Jones
  • 03/03/26

The School District of La Crosse in La Crosse, Wis., recently broke ground on a new elementary school that will consolidate the students and staff of two existing schools, according to local news. Funding for the school comes from a $53-million referendum approved in 2024, and it has an estimated completion date of fall 2027.

The school will unite the existing communities of Emerson and Spence Elementary Schools, and it will stand on the site of a former district administrative center. The facility is a response to declining enrollment figures and aging facilities, key challenges that the district has continued to face.

"We knew we had declining enrollment; we knew we had to do something about aging facilities,” said district superintendent Aaron Engel in a local news story. “I'm just thankful for the facility advisory committee that deliberated a range of solutions.”

The district’s director of elementary education, Shelly Shirel, commented on the degree of community input that went into the planning process. “The three-story elementary school that will emerge from this spot will be more than a building,” she said. “It will reflect collaboration, thoughtful planning, and our shared commitment to students and community. It will be a place where students, staff, and our community can grow, explore, and thrive together.”

The district hasn’t yet named the school, but local news reports that the community like likely get the chance to provide input.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Girl Sitting at Library Desk, Using Laptop

    How Campus Design Shapes the Finals Week Experience

    Academic performance is not just about preparation. It is closely tied to how students manage stress, maintain their energy, and shift between work and recovery modes. Much of that is influenced, directly or indirectly, by design.

  • KWK Architects Announces Full Transition to Lawrence Group Branding

    KWK Architects recently announced that it will complete its transition to the Lawrence Group brand effective July 1, according to a news release. The merger marks the end of a three-year strategic integration process that began in March 2023 to unite the firms.

  • AAADM Announces Building Safety Month Initiatives

    The American Association of Automatic Door Manufacturers (AAADM) recently announced its support of Building Safety Month as declared by the International Code Council (ICC), according to a news release.

  • Planning with Clarity: Using AI to Make Better Campus Decisions, Not Just Better Designs

    Higher education leaders are being asked to make increasingly high-stakes decisions about campus facilities amid greater uncertainty than ever before. Social and economic pressures, shifting enrollment, and evolving learning models compete with growing deferred maintenance needs to strain even the most robust infrastructure budgets.