RAPID CITY - Carolyn Krausch is loving the view.
For 18 years, the Rapid City Christian School academic dean shared a one-window, below-ground-level office she jokingly refers to as "the cellar" in the school's rented space at Bible Fellowship Church.
On Sept. 3, however, the school opened its doors to students at a new location in a newly renovated section of Hart Ranch Arena south of Rapid City.
Now, it's not uncommon for Krausch to look out her classroom window and see cows grazing on a nearby hill, or from her office, the trees waving in the wind.
"It's a great facility," she said. "I don't know why we didn't do it sooner."
Rapid City Christian bought the Hart Ranch Arena in 2003, and the master plan for the school has been drawn up for three years, superintendent Dave Berry said.
"We've anticipated it for a long time. … It's a sense of we're home," he said. "For the first tim,e we own a facility. … We're tremendously indebted to the Bible Fellowship Church, but it was time."
The transition has been smooth, Berry said, with many parents and staff members working through the summer to get classes started on time.
Berry invites the public to come see the new school Sunday at an open house.
"It's more than a ribbon cutting," he said. "It's so people know what the facility is for and what we're doing."
The work is far from over, he said.
The school will share the building with National American University for another year and cannot complete renovations until then to convert the horse barn and arena into a gymnasium, fine-arts center and larger classrooms.
In the meantime, students attend chapel, gym class and eat lunch in a more than 9,000-square-foot, fabric-covered open-span structure to the west of the arena.
The small classrooms, which will later be used as offices, are only temporary, Berry said.
"Right now, these rooms are adequate, but the board knows we want to step it up," he said.
To complete the restoration, Berry said, a capital campaign will begin after the first of the year. There are no final numbers yet. The initial estimate to renovate the entire building was $3.5 million, but many renovations have already been made, so that number should be less, he said.
Spanish teacher Chris Spader is sharing her classroom with the band teacher, and during her planning hour, there is nothing but a set of earplugs and a partition separating her from the music. The tight quarters and arranging of schedules are worth having their own facility, she says.
"I think it's really great we have our own place and sense of identity," she said.
Eighth-grader Deanna Watts doesn't seem to mind, either.
"The country's really cool, and I like the horses," she said. "It's like we're one big happy family."
But Berry said he knows money and more work are not the only challenges the school faces. Enrollment is down, with 77 attending this year, compared to last year's 101. It's hard to tell how many students they lost because of the move, however, because 23 seniors graduated.
He said they might have lost a few students because of a hesitation about the drive being too long or kids having an allergic reaction to horses. Berry said the people that come to the open house will find that the building doesn't smell, and the drive is beautiful.
Krausch agreed.
"There was some, 'I don't think it's going to work,'" he said. "Once those questions are settled, people will (realize) it's not an issue. People will look at it and say, 'That's where I want my kid to go.'"
If you go
What: Rapid City Christian School open house
When: 1 p.m.-3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 7, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and dedication at 2 p.m.
Where: Rapid City Christian School, 23757 Arena Drive. Go south on U.S. Highway 16, take a left onto Neck Yoke Road, a left onto Spring Creek Road and a right onto Arena Drive.
Contact Kayla Gahagan at 394-8410 or kayla.gahagan@rapidcityjournal.com
