Vare-Washington School, is a

K-8 school K8 or K-8 may refer to: * K-8 (Kansas highway), two highways in Kansas, one in northern Kansas, one in southern Kansas * K-8 school, a type of school that includes kindergarten and grades one through eight * AMD K8, the internal designation for the ...

South Philadelphia South Philadelphia, nicknamed South Philly, is the section of Philadelphia bounded by South Street to the north, the Delaware River to the east and south and the Schuylkill River to the west.Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. It is a part of the

School District of Philadelphia The School District of Philadelphia (SDP) is the school district that includes all school district-operated public schools in Philadelphia. Established in 1818, it is the 8th largest school district in the nation, by enrollment, serving over 200 ...

. It occupies the former George Washington School building in the Dickinson Narrows neighborhood, in proximity to

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

.Medina, Regina.
Philly union challenges teacher-dump decision
" ''

Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...

''. May 24, 2013. Retrieved on November 30, 2015.

History

The Abigail Vare School was named after Abigail Vare, the mother of the three Vare Brothers (including

William Scott Vare William Scott Vare (December 24, 1867August 7, 1934) was an American politician from Pennsylvania who served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 1st congressional district from 1912 to 1927. ...

), who became politicians and contractors. The historic Washington school building was designed by

Irwin T. Catharine Irwin Thornton Catharine (October 22, 1883 – March 3, 1944) was the chief architect of Philadelphia Public school (government funded), public schools from 1920 until his retirement in 1937. Buildings built during Catharine's tenure ranged from ...

and built in 1935-1937. It is a three-story, brick and

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

building in the

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

/ Moderne-style. It features ribbon windows, brick piers, and a projecting entrance with skyscraper-like details and rounded corners with decorative figures. ''Note:'' This includes The school was originally established to serve children of workers in the

Philadelphia Navy Yard The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was an important naval shipyard of the United States for almost two centuries. Philadelphia's original navy yard, begun in 1776 on Front Street and Federal Street in what is now the Pennsport section of the cit ...

and had been in operation since the

U.S. Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states t ...

period. In 1985 Washington and one other school were the first two Philadelphia public schools to sign up for Education for Parenting, a program in which students are taught about parenting by observing real infants. The building was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1986. In December 2012 Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. presented a proposal that would close Washington and move

Abigail Vare School Abigail Vare School is a former school building located in the Pennsport neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is located across from Dickinson Square Park.Jennings, James.Mt. Sinai Developer Plans Apartments, Townhomes at Shuttered Penn ...

into Washington's building. At the time Washington's building was in a better condition compared to Vare's, while the Vare school had an academic performance superior to that of Washington's. In March 2013, the school district voted to close Washington. Vare moved from its previous building to current building, and was renamed Vare-Washington School. Since the move, the former Vare School has remained empty. As a result of the closing of Washington, all Washington staff and teachers were to lose their positions, even though the Washington building was staying open. On May 14, 2013, the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers filed a grievance to try to reverse this decision.

Feeder patterns

Residents of the current Vare-Washington zone,School Finder
"

. Retrieved on November 30, 2015. and residents of the former Abigail Vare School zone, are zoned to

Furness High School Horace Howard Furness High School is a secondary (9th-12th) school in South Philadelphia. It is part of the School District of Philadelphia. Portions of South Philadelphia (including Bella Vista, Passyunk Square, Pennsport, Queen Village, an ...

.Horace Furness High School Geographic Boundaries

Archive
.

. Retrieved on October 4, 2011.

Gallery

File:Vare-Washington Elementary School Philadelphia (DSC 2053).jpg File:Vare-Washington Elementary School Philadelphia (DSC 2026).jpg File:Vare-Washington Elementary School Philadelphia (DSC 1956).jpg File:Vare-Washington Elementary School Philadelphia (DSC 2009).jpg File:Vare-Washington Elementary School Philadelphia (DSC 2001).jpg

Additional Information

From National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Historic Resource Survey Form, July 1986 Physical Description The George Washington School is similar in appearance to the Robert Fulton and George Meade Schools. Constructed of brick and limestone, the school is three stories high and spans almost the length of the block. Designed in the Art Deco/Moderne style, the building is dominated by its vertical lines. Ribbon bands of windows punctuated by thin and thick brick piers further emphasize this verticality. The main entrance, an attenuated column, projects from the building roofline in skyscraper fashion. The building fenestration pattern is regular with triplet sash separating a single sash with a thin brick pier. All of the sash is double hung six over six. Limestone sills give some horizontal emphasis to the regular pattern of the windows. A thick limestone lintel above the third floor sash is a bold contrast to the attenuated detailing above. The large brick piers, rising above the parapet line, in battlement style, have limestone caps. The main entrance tower has an ornately carved, limestone entrance surround. The overscale detail, with the characteristic rounded corners is created by two figures, wearing robes and carrying lanterns, lighting the way to the main door. These figures constitute the columns which support a smooth dressed entablature with a carved name plate and fascia detailing. Rising from the entablature is a band of windows two stories in height. The sash is figured with a double hung center opening and two small, double hung side sash. A decorative limestone panel continues to the roofline. Adjacent to the main entrance is the auditorium area which continues the building's appearance with the exception of the window pattern.

References

External links

Vare-Washington School

Former Abigail Vare attendance boundaryArchive

Former George Washington ES attendance boundaryArchive
* Former George Washington ES site: - {{National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania South Philadelphia Public K–8 schools in Philadelphia School District of Philadelphia School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Philadelphia Art Deco architecture in Pennsylvania Moderne architecture in Pennsylvania School buildings completed in 1937