Crime & Safety
Students at Saint Alphonsus Return to Class
First day of school for parish school students since December 25 fire.
The sound of children's voices is once again filling the hallways and classrooms at St.Alphonsus Parish School in Greendale.
January 9 was the first day students were welcomed back to class since an .
An investigation into the cause of the fire, which started in a storage area of the church, has been ruled undetermined.
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Students at the school had been expected to return last Friday, January 6, but the final inspection of the building was not completed until that day, pushing the first day back to Monday.
Principal Pat Wadzinski said the delay was also in part to teachers needing extra time to reorganize their classrooms, "It was even more work than returning from summer break. Teachers had to return everything to the classrooms that had been taken out because of the work being done. But now the rooms look beautiful, even better than before."
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Wadzinski waited outside the school to greet parents and students with hugs and smiles as they arrived.
The school has 400 students in grades K3 - 8th grade.
Church services are expected to continue to be held in a community room at St. Alphonsus for another eight to ten weeks while cleanup and repair work continue on the building.