St. Louis architect William B. Ittner designed Jackson Park School toward the end of a long career specializing in school architecture. Ittner designed more than 500 schools in 28 states including 60 here in St. Louis; most of these schools are still being used. Although William Ittner died in 1936 at the age of 72, his firm still designs schools around the country.
By the time Ittner designed Jackson Park in 1932, he had an international reputation as a designer of school buildings, in part because of the numerous innovations he introduced. He is still admired for the airiness, light, spaciousness, and convenience of his schools.
Ittner believed in safe and healthy schools, so he designed classrooms with large windows for light and fresh air. He pioneered the use of the panic bar on exit doors that can be pushed to open the door quickly in an emergency instead of having to turn a knob. He even included fireplaces in kindergarten rooms in some schools to provide a homier atmosphere for small children starting school. Wide corridors give children plenty of room between classes, and the gym, stage and playroom support a curriculum including physical exercise, performances, and play.
Jackson Park Today llustrating many aspects of Ittner's schools, JP boasts richly patterned brick (his father was a brick manufacturer), ornamented with features such as towers and stone work. Inside, decorative tiles and terrazzo floors are enduring architectural elements generally too expensive for today's schools. Back in the 1930s, boys and girls even had separate entrances you can still see the signs engraved above the doors on the west side of the school.
The school's location on the Balson Circle is a companion to University City High School that, together with the former Hanley Junior High School, formed part of an education zone once planned along with substantial landscaping features and monuments along Jackson Avenue.
Jackson Park School's initial enrollment was 345 students in ten classrooms from kindergarten to sixth grade. A series of additions allowed for increased enrollment, with 635 enrolled in the 1945-46 school year, averaging 37 children per class. Peak enrollment was 686 students in the 1955-56 school year, when there were 23 teachers. In the mid 1970s, there were more than 500 students at the school, and 481 in 1985. Today, enrollment is around 350.
Next time you're in the school, take a look at our fine old school building in appreciation for its enduring architecture and its contribution to the educational experience of our children.
While our Ittner designed building is beautiful, it is aging and 21st century students have needs that were science fiction in 1935. Proposition U, passed by voters in April 2009, is providing for a new gymnasium, an addition to the cafeteria, a new entrance, a new library, energy efficient windows, new classrooms and a building that will be ADA compliant. You can download a brief presentation of the changes being planned.
01-30-2012
