History of Andover schools
May 25, 2007
Andover Public Schools Today
The Andover School District currently covers an area of 46.75 square miles and overlaps the eastern border of Sedgwick County and western border of Butler County. With more than 4,000 students in Andover’s four elementary, two middle and two high schools, Andover schools continue to grow. Parental interest, quality teachers, small class sizes and high expectations create an excellent environment for learning in our schools -- proven in the excellent scores by students on state and national measures of achievement. Andover students consistently score above national and state norms on Stanford Achievement, ACT and Kansas State Assessment tests. Nearly 90 percent of graduating seniors go on to college or other higher education. Andover has been recognized at the state and national levels for its outstanding academic programs, including 120 Standard of Excellence awards from the state of Kansas in the last six years and three years as one of the “Best 100 Communities for Music Education in America.” Community support is evident in the many volunteers in the schools and in the district’s alliance with the Andover Advantage Foundation, a non-profit educational support organization formed in 1996 by a group of concerned citizens. The group believes the quality of life in a community is directly related to its educational system and help support excellent educational experiences that state monies do not adequately cover.
The Andover School District is looking to the future with a continued emphasis on high achievement standards for all students in a caring, positive environment. High expectations and community support will continue to be a part of the schools’ success. New regulations, the implementation of the No Child Left Behind act and enhancing the district’s technology are challenges that face that district in the future. The district will work with parents, patrons, legislators and other stakeholders to advocate together for a strong system of public education for all Kansas students in light of decreased legislative support.
The community supported a $39.68 million bond issue in Sept. 2005 by a nearly three to one margin. The bond issue calls for the building of three new elementary schools, athletic facility improvements, additions to one elementary and one high school, safety and security improvements throughout, and more. Additions to Cottonwood Elementary School were completed in December 2006, athletic facility improvements were completed in fall 2006, and work has begun on additions to Andover High School. The first new elementary school, Robert M. Martin Elementary School, is set to open in August 2007 on 159th St. just north of 21st St. The next two new elementary schools will open in August 2008 -- Wheatland Elementary School on the north side of 21st St. between 143rd and 159th streets, and Prairie Creek Elementary School on Yorktown, south of Kellogg and east of Andoer Road. The Meadowlark Elementary School building will close for renovations during the 2008-2009 school year, reopening in Aug. 2009.
Andover Public Schools History
But where did all this growth begin? How did Andover schools become schools of choice for so many people? Here’s some of what we know:
In 1875, the same year professional baseball had its first recorded shutout, the first newspaper cartoon strip appeared in print, and Susan B. Anthony was arrested for attempting to vote, a wooden one-room schoolhouse was built near where Andover now stands. This school was moved to Andover when the town was laid out. The portion that was moved was adjoined with a new school house, built at a cost of $2,000, on Andover Road just north of Allison Street. It was completed in 1882 and school started that fall. This was the first Andover school, and Professor Hanskin was in charge of the 86 students who attended. In 1917, the cost of first class postage went up to 3 cents, the United States entered World War I, and the first permanent school building for the Andover School District was constructed – a three story brick building. A bus barn was the only other structure at the time, and the district was known as “District 122.” It wasn’t until consolidation in 1965 that the district became “USD 385.”
A number of small schools in surrounding townships were consolidated into the Andover school district over the years. Rose (school #27) in Bruno Township, which opened in 1871, closed in 1948 after consolidating with Andover. Indianola (school #50), also opened in 1871 and later consolidated with Andover. School #61 in Bruno Township opened in 1872 and consolidated with Andover in 1910. Lorena (school #91) opened in 1872 and consolidated with Andover in 1945.
A bond issue was passed in 1950-51 to expand the Andover school to accommodate the growth in the area following World War II. This expansion included the building that forms part of Cottonwood Elementary School today. A new elementary school was completed in the late 1950s and added on to in the 1960s, when a new stadium, cafeteria and classrooms were added at the high school (the cafeteria and classrooms are what is currently the stadium building, and the high school was later Andover Intermediate and is now Cottonwood Elementary school). Two school bond issues were voted down by residents in the mid 70s, though one passed in 1978 to build a new upper level school – Andover High School -- a 120,000 square foot structure designed to school 750 students. It was built at a cost of $3,703,050. The class of 1982 was the first senior class to graduate from this facility. In the late 1980s, additions were made to the high school and the Butler County Community College wing was added.
Andover Elementary (later Andover Intermediate for grades 3-5 and then Martin Primary South for K-3, and now Meadowlark Elementary School for K-5) was built in 1959, with additions in 1966 and 1981. Andover Primary School for grades 1-2 (later Robert M. Martin Primary and then Martin Primary North, now Robert M. Martin Elementary School for K-5) was built in 1987, and was originally built to accommodate primary (grades 1-2) children. A second addition was added in 1988 to accommodate kindergarten and additional 1st‑2nd grade children. In 1997, the school accommodated children K-3. In 2000, the district reorganized, and each of the four elementary schools now serves students in K-5. Andover Middle School was built in 1996, and the older part of Cottonwood Elementary School (which was first high school, then middle school) was built in 1947. Cottonwood opened as an elementary in 2000.
A $52 million bond was passed in November 1998 to meet the demands of a growing student population. The bond program provided for an additional high school (Andover Central High School, which opened in 2001), middle school (Andover Central Middle School, which opened in 2001) and elementary school (Sunflower Elementary School, which opened in 2000). It also included an addition to Cottonwood Elementary School, new district athletic fields and improvements to Andover High School and central service facilities. This is also when the district moved from two K‑3 buildings and one 4‑5 building to four K‑5 elementaries. A primary reason was to create schools that were smaller in order to improve student achievement, student involvement, and student safety and create neighborhood schools. The community’s vote to approve this bond issue supports the Board of Education’s commitment to small class size.
Note: A comprehensive history of the Andover schools doesn’t seem to exist. If you have information you think would be important to a historical file, please send a copy to Keturah Austin at Andover Public Schools District Office, 1432 N. Andover Rd., Andover, KS 67002, e-mail it to austink@usd385.org or fax it to 733-3604. Thank you.
Sources: The Andover Chamber of Commerce, Roy Hoyle’s “Andover Yesterday and Today,” William G. Cutler’s “History of the State of Kansas” as referenced on the www.kancoll.org web site, Butler County KSGenWeb at http://skyways.lib.ks.us/genweb/butler/library/schools/buschls.htm, a portion of “The Columbian History of Education in Kansas” compiled by Kansas educators and published under the auspices of the Kansas Historical Society, 1893, as found at http://skyways.lib.ks.us/genweb/education/1893book/butler.html, and the notes of several helpful people at the school district.
