Wiesbaden ES (formerly Hainerberg ES, Hoyt S. Vandenberg ES) History
Opened: 1951
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The original Hainerberg American Elementary School was in the Hainerberg military housing area and served the students who lived in Hainerberg, Crestview, Mainz Kastel, and Wiesbaden Air Base housing areas, as well as students living in economy housing throughout the extended Wiesbaden Area. In the mid-eighties there was an addition to the original building.
Prior to being called Hainerberg Elementary School, the elementary school in Wiesbaden was called Vandenberg Elementary School. The name was changed to Hainerberg Elementary in the 1970s. This name change happened when the Headquarter for USAF Europe left Wiesbaden and the US Army took control of the military communities and housing areas. No reason was ever given for the name change. The school was simply told that the name was to be changed.
When the school opened in 1951, it opened as a K–8 school and serviced all the children in the immediate housing area and on the economy. The seventh and eighth grades were located in the northern part of the building and Hap H. Arnold High School was across the street in the next block. As the enrollment grew, some classes were moved into basement rooms in the housing area along Mississippi Strasse. There were nine of these classrooms and they were first used for fifth and sixth grade, art, and special education classes.
Mary L. Palmer was the principal for the 1954-55 school year, and there were 1,539 students enrolled in the school. When the junior high became a middle school in 1968, the sixth grade was moved to the middle school.
In 1982 a new wing was added to the elementary school and three schools were consolidated: Wiesbaden Air Base Elementary, Lindsey Elementary, and Hainerberg Elementary.
For the 1987-88 school year, there were 1,380 students in grades kindergarten through five. This was an increase over the 1,200 students enrolled in the early eighties. Special services were provided in the areas of special education, speech, reading, English as a Second Language, counseling, health, art, music, physical education, and media resources.
Enrollment remained constant through the mid-nineties. By the 2003-04 school year the enrollment was about 900 students in preschool through fifth grade and had dropped to about 700 students by the 2007-08 school year.
The school colors are red and brown, and the school mascot is the Dachshund. Jim Lenz, a former principal at the school had a dachshund that was often at the school. The mascot was named “Spirit” during the 2007-08 school year.
Mark Benham was the principal in the early 2000s followed by Dr Barbara Hickman. Their assistant principal was Wanda McKinzy.
On July 1, 2020, the official name of the school became Wiesbaden Elementary School. The administrators for the 2022-23 school year were principal Susanne Morin and assistant principals Elise Rosch and Dr. Ebony Freeman. The school enrollment was 699 students in Sure Start through fifth grade. The enrollment remained constant through the 2025-26 school year when Netra Harwell was the principal, and the assistants were Dr. Mary Anne Hartkey and Seanie Sunshine Bulde.
Information from DoDDS School Information Guides, school yearbooks and internet resources