Fifty years ago this month, Rochester students were heading back to school and some of them were walking into new classrooms. The newly-constructed McGregor Elementary School opened its doors to students who had formerly attended classes in the old Harrison School at the corner of Fourth & Wilcox. The Harrison building, meanwhile, was being remodeled to provide more space for students of the Central Junior High School at that location.
The Rochester Clarion reported that the school district was expecting to enroll approximately 5,100 students for the 1961-62 school year, and increase of about 300 over the previous year. The school district workforce also expanded in 1961, rising to the level of 228 employees - up from 200 the previous year. Fifty years later, RCS enrollment is somewhere near 15,000 and approximately 1,700 people are employed by the district. Back in 1961 RCS had one employee for every 22 students enrolled; today, the ratio is 8.8.
Thank you for mentioning McGregor! The school is planning a 50th anniversary celebration kick-off on Sept. 29 at 2:30 p.m. The celebration is open to the public. We'd love former students and staff to attend. It's shaping up to be a great event. We'll also have a variety of events throughout the school year to celebrate McGregor's milestone. We'd love to hear from former students for a memory book. We're also looking for old photos of the school, classes, school activites, etc. We really need these items. If you have something to share, please contact the McGregor PTA at mcgregorpta@gmail.com. Thanks, again!
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