Cincinnati Enquirer / August 22, 2012
Oyler School students returned to a $21 million renovated building in Lower Price Hill. It’s among five new or renovated buildings that greeted students in the region’s largest district. The district is in the final stretch of a $1.2 billion project to overhaul all its schools.
The new Oyler includes the only school-based eye clinic in the state, a health clinic, a day care center and a rooftop convening area for high school students.
Oyler, a 626-student PreK-12 school, has won national accolades for its “wrap-around” approach to education, including the day care and eye care center.
It is a “Community Learning Center,” something CPS has become famous for in education circles, which leverages partnerships with community groups to provide things like health care, tutoring and after school activities for kids and families. The idea is to address the challenges low-income students face outside of the classroom to help improve their chances at academic success.
Up on the rooftop gathering area, teacher Brian “Joe” Saylor welcomed students back. He’s a third-generation Oyler graduate, who came back two years ago to teach.
He said the new building, with its community spaces and technology, is about more than just a building; it’s about equality.