We believe that we have a responsibility to make sure that Garfield Elementary School students have the skills necessary to attend college if they choose. As part of this mission, we teach Garfield students about college and university life and instill in them the belief that college is not only within their reach, but an expectation. We also live by our Be’s:
- Be respectful
- Be responsible
- Be safe
- Be ready…because we’re going to college!
All of our rules and expectations are tied to one of these Be’s. Students and staff use this language in every part of the school day.
Students at Garfield have a variety of enrichment opportunities, including athletic intramurals, performing arts intramurals, art club, and German club. Garfield hosts two Title 1 events throughout the year, a family math night, and breakfast with books. Garfield also boasts an active Boy Scout and Girl Scout troop with meetings taking place weekly at the school.
Garfield has a small but mighty parent teacher association. This group works very hard to raise funds to provide activities and resources for our students that the school budget might not allow. A few examples include providing additional transportation funds for field trips, Time For Kids online subscriptions, and unique physical education units such as roller skating. In addition, the PTA sponsors several Garfield community events that are low cost or free for families. The purpose of these events is to gather families together to build community.
Garfield participates in the lunch buddy program through Big Brothers/Big Sisters and several students have benefited from the opportunity to meet with a lunch buddy twice per month. Garfield is also beginning a partnership with HACAP to provide a backpack program to provide meals over the weekend for students. Garfield enjoys a School + Community Partnership with Oakland Road Hy-Vee, Ralston Foods, and Bank of the West. These partners provide monetary and supply donations as well as offer volunteers and adopt-a-family initiatives.
Garfield is 100 years old and the history of the building is evident in the architecture and built-in woodwork. While the building is old, it has been meticulously maintained. Modern features have been added without sacrificing the unique history of the building. Garfield sits on eight acres of land and provides copious amounts of green space for students and the surrounding community to enjoy.
School history
An election was held in March 1914 to build Garfield School, which was called Mound Farm School until July 7, 1914. A proposal to build a new grade school on Mound Farm was passed by a majority vote.
The board employed Mr. Dieman, an architect, and on August 6, 1914, the contract was awarded to the Guarantee Construction Company for $31,749.
The original building had six regular classrooms and an auditorium on the second floor. The building was different in plan than any recent building, having a central corridor with rooms on either side.
An addition was added in 1927 to Garfield School. Two classrooms were added to each end of the corridor at a cost of $30,000. Another addition was built in 1953. This added another ten classrooms, a combination gym/auditorium, and a cafeteria at a cost of $500,000.
In recent years, air conditioning has been installed in the classrooms. In 2001, wiring and plumbing were updated and a 31-station computer lab was completed.