Flooding leads to a temporary school in Rock Valley

ROCK VALLEY, I.A. (KELO) — Not long ago, Rock Valley’s K-12 school was an island, surrounded by floodwater.

“Contents were destroyed, as well as our grounds, our bus barn. So, to be quite frank, it felt a little bit lonely at first,” Rock Valley Community School District Superintendent Matt Van Voorst said.

But that quickly changed. Van Voorst said more than 700 clean-up volunteers arrived within days of the flood which eventually led to a partnership to put up a temporary school building.

Now, the finished structure sits just a few hundred feet away from the main school. Starting next week, up to 150 students at a time can begin their school year inside.

“It includes 6 classrooms each wired with WiFi and complete with a smart board, plus just a common area for additional learning activities. But most importantly, this building makes it possible to bring the students to this in this community back together,” Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds said.

As work continues on the main school building, other places in town are also opening their doors for students.

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“One that worked great, and they were very willing, was Trinity Reformed Church in Rock Valley. They’ve opened our doors for our students to be learning in there,” Van Voorst said.

Rock Valley officials said they wouldn’t be where they are today without help from the state. Governor Reynolds said The Department of Education has offered $80,000 in federal grants to help affected students and schools.

“There’s many people who are suffering out here. But with the partnership that we have formed, we’re hoping that we can get this community to heal and get housing for everyone, get the kids back in school where they need to be, and so we can move on,” Rock Valley Mayor Kevin Van Otterloo said.

The Rock Valley Community School District starts school on September 5th.

Another school coming back from flood damage is Rock Valley Christian. Staff said their building is also ready to welcome students back this fall.

“Our classrooms are ready for students as we speak. We’re just finishing up the final touches on our kitchen so we can serve lunches to our students,” Principal Marcus De Jager. “We have busses coming in from New York and Oklahoma as we speak, and we will have transportation for every student at Rock Valley Christian School.”

Even though the rebuilding process isn’t over, officials said it’s a big step in the right direction.