KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Knox County Board of Education decided to change how they pay for new playgrounds on Thursday.
A proposal passed the board that allocates money in the Knox County Schools budget for new playgrounds. In the past, parents and community members had to raise money to pay for new equipment and construction at schools. In Lonsdale and Adrian Burnett Elementary School, playgrounds cost around $200,000 each.
"When we build new schools now, elementary schools, including the one we are building now, we will now build a new playground for that school," said Daniel Watson, the board member for KCS District 3. "Even if it's a different superintendent or a different operations person, moving forward, part of those standards will be to always build a new playground."
He said that it is the first county-wide playground policy change in around 30 years. A parent and teacher at Beaumont Elementary School, Michelle Kiyimba, said that the playground is as important a part of a child's education as the classroom.
"Play is such an important part of learning, and children learn from play from the very beginning. So, it has to be an important part of education in our school system," she said.
The proposal was also meant to address differences in playground quality between Knoxville neighborhoods. In West Knoxville, many schools have playgrounds that feature new equipment. But in low-income communities, Watson said several playgrounds need more work.
"What happens if you're in a community that doesn't have as much fundraising capacity? Then the system continues to strip out the playground, but there's no way to replace the playground," Watson said.
He said that he is still pushing for repairs to be a part of the KCS budget, which will be proposed in April.
"As part of free public education, it should be included as part of that so children have equal opportunity to learn no matter what their parent's income is, what their poverty level is. They deserve the same type of education that includes play," Kiyimba said. "With already established schools not receiving the same funding for repairs and ongoing growth of their facility, it doesn't seem equal. It doesn't seem balanced at all."