On Wednesday, the Bethel School District celebrated the groundbreaking of the Danebo Elementary School expansion project.
Kindergarteners and first graders gathered in front of a large dirt pile, wearing hard hats and holding shovels, to take part in the groundbreaking.
The expansion at Danebo Elementary will include six new classrooms, a shared learning space, and a large gymnasium. Construction will also renovate the school’s front entrance, update the current gym into a multipurpose room, install a digital reader board and add cooling capabilities into every classroom.
Bethel Superintendent Kraig Sproles said the expansion is first and foremost about investing into the district’s students. Like other districts in Oregon, Bethel has experienced declining enrollment, with Shasta Middle School closing at the end of the 2025/2026 school year.
“We're a district that's experiencing declining enrollment, like a lot of districts around the state,” said Sproles. “But it's still important for our community to know we're investing in the students that we have.”
Sproles said the new gym will both serve Danebo students and act as a community gathering space in the Bethel neighborhood of Eugene.
“When we build things, we build them with an eye on how can this benefit our overall community,” said Sproles.
Sproles said Bethel doesn’t have a community center supported by the city, so the new gym can act as one during non-school hours.
Construction on the expansion is expected to continue through next spring.
