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Provo’s Wasatch Elementary School welcomes students to new facility after 2-year rebuild

By Curtis Booker - | Jan 16, 2025
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The outside of the new Wasatch Elementary School building in Provo is shown Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2024.
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A marquee outside of the new Wasatch Elementary School in Provo is shown Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2024.
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Ruth Ann Snow, Wasatch Elementary School principal, left center in plaid jacket, talks with parents in the hallway at the new Wasatch Elementary School in Provo on Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2024.
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A sign reading "Welcome home Rangers!" is displayed outside of the new Wasatch Elementary School in Provo on Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2024.
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A "read" sign is displayed inside of the new Wasatch Elementary School library Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2024.
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A playground located in the rear of the new Wasatch Elementary School in Provo is seen Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2024.

Wasatch Elementary School ushered in a new era as doors opened at the new $44 million campus Wednesday.

The school moved locations from its original site at 1080 N. 900 East in Provo right across from Brigham Young University, where it sat since 1949, to a new facility just east of there at 1006 Locust Lane.

In 2021, the Provo City School District entered into a land-swap agreement with BYU, selling the aging Wasatch building in exchange for land that already was owned by the university.

Construction on the new Wasatch campus began in late 2022.

“It’s something that we’ve talked about for the last several years, and it’s finally come to fruition,” said Ruth Ann Snow, Wasatch Elementary School principal.

Students, along with their parents, staff and faculty, said their final goodbyes to the 75-year-old Wasatch Elementary facility Friday in preparation of Wednesday’s open house and first day of classes in the new school building.

“It has been a long process to get to this point, to get this build done, and we’re very excited for this community,” said Meg Van Wagenen, a Provo school board member. “They’ve been waiting for their school to be rebuilt, to get into a safe building, and (I’m) so very excited for our students, our teachers and our families to be able to enjoy this new space.”

Sitting almost directly under “Y mountain,” the new three-level building aligns with modern seismic codes and features new spaces for art, music and physical education, a new library and upgrades to the school’s lighting systems.

Students also will be able to enjoy a new school playground.

As with most things, change can bring various emotions.

Whitney McGowan, a parent with two children currently enrolled at Wasatch Elementary, had slightly mixed feelings about the transition to a new school building, though she also noted excitement about its bright and beautiful features.

“I’ve been driving kids there (to Wasatch Elementary School) for maybe 10 years, and so we’ll miss Wasatch. But I love that we’re bringing a lot of the traditions back to the new school,” McGowan told the Daily Herald.

Snow recognizes what the change of locations means for Wasatch students and community members who hold long-lasting memories of the old building.

“You know, whenever you’ve been in a space like we have, where Wasatch has been around for 75 years, I think it’s always a hard transition to think of leaving that,” Snow said.

She feels the new space will aid in providing a safe and efficient place to promote learning.

On Wednesday morning, parents and community members had an opportunity to tour the new building as classes were underway.

The halls were filled with dozens of people admiring what the new facility has to offer.

“We’re just grateful that we know that this building is beautiful, but it takes parents, teachers, students and a community at large that makes it a really special place,” Snow said.