History of Dickson Elementary School

          Dickson Elementary School opened in 1957 under supervision of Mr. Walter M. Work, Superintendent of Dickson County Schools.  When DES opened, students in the sixth, seventh, and eighth grades occupied the building.  When the building opened in 1957 it had a total of twelve classrooms, a large central lobby off of which opened the cafeteria, gymnasium, and restrooms. The administrative area included a small reception area and a principal’s office with a teachers’ workroom/lounge directly across the hall.  In 1964 eight classrooms, a library and two additional restrooms were added to accommodate the growing enrollment of Dickson Elementary School.  The structure remained relatively unchanged until 1997 when two additional restrooms were added to accommodate the needs of kindergarten and first grade students.  At this same time several classrooms in the original building were reconfigured to accommodate instruction in art, computers, and special education.  Additionally, the administrative area was renovated yielding a separate reception area and bookkeeper’s office, a new principal’s office, a new teachers’ workroom/lounge, and an in-school suspension area.  Dickson Elementary presently has eighteen regular classrooms, three special education classrooms, one Title 1 classroom, one library/media center, one gymnasium, separate classrooms for art and music, and one cafeteria.  There are separate offices/classrooms for speech and small group guidance classes.  Eight portables were erected between the years 1982 and 1997 to accommodate growth.  The portables are used to house three fifth grade classrooms, a music classroom, a before and after school care facility, a classroom for occupational and physical therapy, and one is subdivided into three smaller spaces for guidance, speech, and a conference area.  We have one playground that is shared by all grade levels, a large playing field that may be used for physical education activities, and an outdoor classroom to facilitate instruction, especially in the areas of science and social studies.

          The grade levels housed at Dickson Elementary School have changed throughout the 49 year history of the school.  The greatest change occurred in the late eighties when it moved from housing upper elementary grades to a first through sixth grade school.  Presently DES houses kindergarten through fifth grade with an approximate enrollment of 340 students.