Spangdahlem ES (originally Spangdahlem Dependent School) History
Opened: 1952
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The original Spangdahlem Dependent School was located in twelve classrooms that were sets of two classrooms with restrooms and an administrative office and teachers’ lounge. The dependent school had grades kindergarten through eight. High school students were bussed to Bitburg High School. The school was located on Spangdahlem Air Base, which was in the Eifel Mountain region of Germany. The airbase was eleven miles east of Bitburg and nineteen miles north of Trier.
By the 1969-70 school year, Spangdahlem Dependent School had over 1,000 students in grades kindergarten through eight. The school annual was called an activity book, and student activities included student council, newspaper, drama, chorus, and basketball. The administrators were Don Miller, principal, and Richard Bennett, assistant principal.
Mr. Martin Brumm became the principal for the 1970-71 school year and remained in this position through the 1974-75 school year. His assistants included Leon Pohlman (’70–’72), Robert Popovich (’72–’74), and John Rhyne (’74 –’75). The school’s enrollment reached over 1,200 students during the 1973-74 school year. Classrooms were located in portable classrooms, the original complex, and basements in the housing area. During these years, additional student activities included library helpers, Junior Red Cross, cheerleaders, Girls Athletic Association, pep club, track, wrestling, girls’ gymnastics, and drama. In 1971, the boys’ basketball team were the League Champions.
At the beginning of the 1975-76 school year, the school became a kindergarten through six school. The seventh and eighth graders were transferred to the newly formed Bitburg Middle School. The middle school teachers from Bitburg and Spangdahlem met several times prior to the move to plan the implementation of the middle school concepts in the new school.
John Williams, principal, and Noel Tilghman, assistant principal, were the administrative team for the late seventies.
By the 1981-82 school year, the school was composed of twenty-one relocatable classrooms, twelve classrooms of regular school construction, and seven basement classrooms located in the family housing area. There were gymnasium, media center, and office facilities. The school had about 900 students in grades kindergarten through six. There were two administrators, three kindergarten teachers, twenty-nine elementary teachers, two host nation teachers, and three paraprofessional aides. The school also had a counselor, health educator, a learning development teacher, a reading improvement specialist, a speech therapist, a music specialist, and a physical education specialist.
Ms. Lynda Simmons became the principal for the 1984-85 school year and remained at the school through the 1992-93 school year. Her assistants included Barbara Burke (’84–’85), Carol Cressey (’85–’86), Bill Harlan (’86–’89), and Linda Curtis (’89–’93).
In the mid-eighties, the school enrollment was about 950 students in grades kindergarten through six. By the late eighties the enrollment was over 1,000 and reached 1,275 students by the 1989-90 school year. The school mascot was the Dolphin, and the newspaper was the Dolphin Update. The school added an annual Spelling Bee to its activities, and other special events included STARLAB, READ-A-THON, Jump Road for Heart, SWEP (Schoolwide Enrichment Program), and a computer club. Several community and school partnerships were in place including SPARK—Spang Parents Are Reaching Kids.
Spangdahlem Middle School opened in 1990, and the elementary school became a kindergarten through fourth grade school. There were 880 students enrolled in the four grades. By the mid-nineties, the elementary school had grades Pre-K through four, and there were 830 students enrolled.
For the 1999-2000 school year, Dee Ann Edwards was the principal and Heidi Shurleff was the assistant principal. The school now had full-day kindergarten. Ms. Ruth Morgan became the principal for the 2001-02 school year and served as principal through the 2005-06 school year. Her assistants were Heidi Shurleff (’00–’02) and Donna McCoy (’02–’04). The school enrolled dropped below 500 for the 2002-03 school year. Sure Start was added for the 2000-01 school year, and a Preschool Child Development program was added in the 2004-05 school year. New student activities in the 2000s included a sign language club and Spanish club.
Barbara Laffoley was the principal for the 2006–2008 school years. Richard Alix was the principal from 2008 until 2014. His assistants were Martha Swanson (’10–’12) and David Eldridge (’12–’13) and Sara Schmidt (’13–’14). The school’s enrollment was between 500 and 575 students. Dr. Angelique Lamonski was principal from 2014–2016, and her assistant was Sara Schmidt. The fifth grade returned from the middle school to the elementary school for the 2016-17 school year and the mascot became the Dragon.
Throughout the years, Spangdahlem Elementary School had an extensive study trip program that included excursions to local host nation locations like the Tierheim and cities such as Cologne and Trier. The students also visited and had visits from several base activities such as the fire department.
According to Stars and Stripes, in 2013 more than 500 students and staff members were relocated to Bitburg Air Base until work to renovate and expand the Spangdahlem Elementary School was completed. The renovated and expanded school opened for the 2017-18 school year. The new principal was Mr. Tefft, and his assistant was Edward Munoz. They remained at the school through the 2019-20 school year.
Currently, Spangdahlem Elementary is part of the Europe West School District. It serves approximately 500 children in grades Sure Start through five. The school population is made up of dependents of US Military and Department of Defense Civilian Personnel assigned to Spangdahlem Air Base and Buechel Flugplatz. The current school is located near the residential area of the base.
The school offers a wide range of academic programs, including physical education, music, host nation, art, as well as the basic curriculum of language arts, mathematics, science, health, and social studies.
The current campus includes seven buildings, several outdoor playgrounds, and an information center, and all classrooms are connected to a LAN with internet access. The principal for the 2022-23 school year was Dr. Jennifer Seals and the assistant principal was Dr. T. J. Klein. The school colors are blue and gold, and it is the Home of the Dragons. Monica Kerner became the principal for the 2023-24 school year with an enrollment of 534 in PreK, Sure Start, kindergarten, and grades one through five.
Information from DoD School Information Guides, school yearbooks and DoDEA school website