Biddeford’s youngest students are loving the elementary school’s new wing. 

The addition to Biddeford Primary School, which has been in the works since 2023, was recently completed, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Thursday.

Comprising 16 additional classroom spaces, a small office and other small workspaces, the wing now allows the district to keep all students from pre-K through second grade in the same building. 

Superintendent Jeremy Ray said in an interview Monday that students and school staff alike seem to be pleased so far.

“It’s exciting. … It’s less transitions for our kids,” Ray said. “We get to know families and build relationships.”

MEETING A NEED

The new wing was built in response to the 2024 closure of John F. Kennedy School.

That school, Ray said, was in disrepair and would have cost at least $30 million to repair. 

The new primary school wing, on the other hand, only cost a little over $9 million to build. It was funded through a city bond that voters approved in 2023.

The new wing allows the district to expand its pre-K program, which Ray said is needed.

“The renovation is not just about building space,” he said as construction got underway in 2024. “It’s about building a brighter future for our students.” 

It’s also an ideal space for summer school, because the entire wing is climate-controlled, and a lot of other school buildings don’t have air conditioning.

WHAT IT OFFERS

The new wing also offers outdoor space. An outdoor balcony classroom will give students the opportunity to do outdoor science lessons. Equipped with a bird window, the classroom allows students to study birds nesting and engage in other scientific activities.

“It’s also just a great place for kids to get outside,” Ray said.

The students’ favorite part of the wing greets them right as they walk through the front doors: an indoor slide in the lobby, fittingly dubbed the “Tiger Tail” after the district mascot.

“It’s really cool,” Ray said.

But for Ray, the most exciting part isn’t the slide. It’s knowing that Biddeford’s youngest students will be in the same school for all four years — learning, growing and becoming part of the Biddeford education system without having to leave the campus.

“That’s where the magic will happen,” he said.

A LEGACY IN THE MAKING

The new school wing has been through three Biddeford mayors: The bond that funded the project was championed by Alan Casavant, ground was broken in 2024 under the leadership of Martin Grohman and the wing was completed this year under Mayor Liam LaFountain.

LaFountain, who attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony last week, said he was honored to carry the project over the finish line.

“For families, this building is where the connection to Biddeford Schools begins,” he said. “It
is where parents entrust their children to us for the first time, and where those children begin developing the confidence, relationships, and love of learning that will carry them through graduation and beyond.”

Years down the line, LaFountain said, he hopes students will return to the primary school as high school graduates, having had the foundation of a cohesive elementary school to carry them through years of education in Biddeford.