Celebrating 100 Years of Education… And Family
by Jeannine Gage
Geneva Elementary School is observing its 100-year anniversary this academic year, and it has many great reasons to celebrate such a major milestone. The school – home of the Mustangs – was recently awarded an A rating, and its students continue to gallop toward their goals. For Geneva Elementary’s administrators and staff, who say they're more like a family than work colleagues, serving a rural community is unique in many ways.
Aimee Padilla - Principal
When the school opened in 1924, it was for K-12 students, and the curriculum was focused on agriculture. They had about 80 students to start. We now have almost 500. Geneva is still very rural. And we still have agriculture – we have chickens. I think we’re the only school in Seminole County that has them on campus.
The school was previously in the old building that is now the Rural Heritage Center. That building is on our campus and still very much a part of our school. The building we’re in now was built in the 1980s.
Amy Bombard - Physical Education Teacher
Until recently people would ride their horses up on school grounds and the kids would give them water from the water fountain that was there. And there would be horse leftovers everywhere. There were wild pigs too.
Note: There is still a sign on the school grounds that reads, “No skateboards, skates, bicycles, or horses on sidewalk.”
Morgan Picton - First-Grade Teacher and Former Student
I remember when I was in fifth grade, there was a bear up in a tree. I tell my kids about it now and they don’t believe me, so I show them the news article. They dismissed us from school while they tried to get him down.
Joy Wood - Fifth-Grade Teacher
If you think about Geneva and what it is, I would say it’s family. If I could wrap it into one word, that would be my word for Geneva. The kids become our family and community. Everybody embraces that.
Morgan Picton:
We are definitely a family. And for me, there’s the legacy. I went here, my siblings went here, my mom works here. My colleagues now were my teachers. I always wanted to work here, because I could see that the teachers here seemed like a family. And I just wanted the same thing as a teacher.
Angela Reeder - Art Teacher
I moved to Geneva from Indiana to be near family, and I stayed here because it felt like family. It feels that way at the school, too.
Kim Picton - Fourth-Grade Teacher and Morgan’s Mom
The smallness of the Geneva community sets us apart. You know everybody you’re working with and also everybody you are teaching, especially if you live out here. I think that’s really important. Relationships and community are huge to me personally, so that’s been really nice for me here.
Charlie Sweetman - Fourth-Grade Teacher
I originally came here just for a change in schools, and what kept me here is the small-town family aspect. I still remember the first meet-the-teacher event. One of the families came in, and they were like, “Welcome to Geneva, here’s a jar of honey.”
Also, on field trips at other schools, it’s like the parents are just meeting each other for the first time. It’s kind of awkward. But when you go on a field trip with Geneva parents, they’re all, “Hey, how’s it going?” And they’re catching up with each other.
Amy Bombard:
And the kids feel the same way. My kids went here, and when there was talk of shutting down the school years ago, my daughter wrote letters to the Seminole County School Board, herself, saying the school needed to stay. It was her family. It’s where she felt safe and comfortable.
Kristen Lichtenthal - Music Teacher and Former Student
What first comes to mind to me that makes Geneva special is that the school has always had a certain love of fun. The teachers enjoy being here. The kids enjoy being here. We laugh, we joke with each other. I have memories of being serenaded in the lunchroom by my assistant principal, for instance. Or of the media assistant who would dress up to teach us about taking care of books. And we have so many big projects and special interest activities that just exist as part of what we do. And I think that’s awesome.
Amy Bombard:
The students’ jokes have changed over time. The things that make them laugh and the things that they decide to bless us with, as far as humor, are definitely different than they used to be.
Here’s to Another Century of Learning
Aimee Padilla:
We are doing so well at Geneva Elementary School because everyone has the same values, and now we also have the same academic goals and desire for success. From our custodian and dining services people to our teachers, we all have the same goals for our students. And so, I think collectively, we do it together. We are moving to emphasize “environmental project-based learning opportunities.” This is a teaching method that allows students to actively explore and address environmental issues. It can also help kids build skills in research, communication, teamwork, and more.
So after 100 years, Geneva Elementary School is still embracing its rural, agricultural roots while looking forward to another incredible century. With that in mind, the school is planning to celebrate its centennial with a community event in February (time and date to be determined). One of the event’s fun activities will be a scavenger hunt to showcase the old schoolhouse and the current campus.