Why a splash pad funded with a fine arts grant is creating controversy in Peoria

PEORIA – A splash pad under construction at the Annie Jo Gordon Learning Center is generating controversy.

The water feature, which includes built-in musical instruments for children to play, is one of two projects being completed in Peoria Public Schools this summer with a fine art grant the district secured late last school year.

The Peoria Federation of Teachers Local 780 says the money should have been directed elsewhere because fine art programs in the district are underfunded and teachers in the district are struggling to do their jobs.

"We just can’t wrap our heads around why this was the top priority for our district,” said Heather Maughan, a music teacher at Whittier Primary School and the head of the fine arts committee for the union. “If you have an orchestra teacher at Annie Jo Gordon that has nowhere to teach, that is a bigger concern to me.”

The orchestra teacher, who works part time at the school, did not have a dedicated room last year, and the school is in need of more full-time art and music teachers, Maughan said.

“We aren’t even offering those basic instrumental programs to those middle school kids,” she said.

A $2 million project

Maughan said the district should have consulted the teachers when determining how to spend the fine art grant. The union learned of the grant in April when a $2,055,000 bid from GIVSCO Construction Company to build the splash pad was approved by the school board. The agenda item in the board packet said the project was being funded by a state Fine Arts Grant.

“The district has been pretty tight-lipped about any details of this grant,” said Maughan. “We asked questions back in April when we saw the school board docket. The fine arts committee asked to have a meeting with the district just to get information about this, and we were pretty much shut down entirely and not allowed to have any meeting with them or discuss it in any sort of way.”

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PPS superintendent Sharon Desmoulin-Kherat said the one-time grant was allocated on a tight deadline, and work had to be completed no later than Aug. 31, so the district moved forward quickly on two projects — the splash pad and a recording studio at Peoria High School.

Unlike the splash pad, teachers approve of the recording studio.

“That made sense with Peoria High School having the Performing Arts Academy there,” said Maughan. “It was another component to further what’s offered through that program to those students."

A gathering place

Both projects will be completed by the Aug. 31 deadline and available to students for the coming school year. As a summer activity, the splash pad is designed to be a gathering place for children and their families.

“The splash pad project affords Peoria Public Schools and our families to have outdoor activities that promote physical well-being, and it is going into an area that is often overlooked,” said Kherat. “This is about improving and building up that community. ... We are always interested in being creative in providing opportunities for kids to get away from the television and the cellphones and to be outside engaged in physical activities.”

Maughan said it’s unlikely the splash pad will get much use as a teaching tool since it's so far away from the classroom. The splash pad sits at the corner of Griswold and Grinnell on land formerly occupied by Harrison Homes. While the lot is adjacent to the parcel which holds Annie Jo Gordon Learning Center, it's about three blocks from the school building.

Concerns have also been raised about the safety of people using the facility, because it is close to Griswold Grocery & Liquor.

As for the cost of running and maintaining a splash pad, Kherat said the expense will not be difficult for the district to absorb.

“In the winter it will be winterized, so there will literally be no operational costs. And our current utility budget will accommodate it, so we feel very confident about that.“

Leslie Renken can be reached at (309) 370-5087 or lrenken@pjstar.com. Follow her on Facebook.com/leslie.renken.

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This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Peoria schools at odds with teacher's union over splash pad funding