Zukeran (Sukiran) ES History
Opened: 1956
OPEN
Zukeran Elementary School was located in central Okinawa, within the Kishaba Terrace military housing area at Camp Butler. The school opened for the 1956-57 school year. The original brick facility was comprised of a main building, with four wings and several support buildings. It had thirty-three classrooms plus rooms for specialists such as the counselor, nurse, learning development teacher, speech therapist and reading specialist. There was a full-sized gymnasium with a stage and a hot lunch cafeteria. All classrooms were air-conditioned.
In the 1981-82 school year, there were forty-three educators on the staff for the 850 students in kindergarten through sixth grade. The principal was Glenn Turquand, and the assistants were Justamona Mack and Leo Spence. For the 1985-86 school year, the administrators were Olan Knight, principal, with assistants Leo Spence and Timothy Kilkenny. The enrollment continually increased and by the end of the nineties there were over 1,000 students at the school. By the mid-nineties, the enrollment had dropped to approximately 625 students with fifty-nine educators and eleven paraprofessionals on the staff. The school administrators for the 1995-96 school year were Russ Claus, principal, and Jill Breaux, assistant principal, with a student enrollment of 820 for PSCD (Preschool Services for Children with Disabilities), Sure Start, and grades kindergarten through six.
Students at the elementary school had a wide variety of activities and school events. The clubs in the eighties and nineties included drama, chess, video, Japanese drum, Japanese language, music, math, and Young Astronauts. A sampling of the local school events included Career Day, Kids on the Block, Artists in Residence, Family Math Night, and Brain Bowl. Each grade level participated in several local study trips such as visiting the Botanical Gardens, Pineapple Factory, and Manza Beach. Additionally, the school had a student council, safety patrol, peer counselors, a school newspaper, and yearbook. Students participated in local cultural events such as “Undokai” which was a Sports Day.
On 29 August 2018, Zukeran Elementary opened its 21st Century facility. It is a two-story facility with an expansive Commons area used for lunch and other large group gatherings, six grade-level instructional neighborhoods, separate art and music rooms, a gymnasium with a wood floor, and a dual-purpose stage which opens to the Commons, and a performance room. Along with its unique architectural features, the school is equipped with the technological features necessary to facilitate 21st Century teaching and learning.
The school colors are blue and lime green, and the mascot is the Toucan. The school motto is “We’re not too small, we’re not too tall, but we Toucans, can do it all.”
The school currently has pre-kindergarten, Sure Start, and kindergarten through fifth grade. There are about 430 students enrolled, and the principal for the 2023-24 school year is Lori Hill.
Information from the school website and DoDDS School Information Guides