George Washington Carver Elementary School opened its doors to students on August 28, 2007 under the leadership of Principal Pat Meade, as a K-5 three-section school with an enrollment of 416 students and 29 teachers. Carver School is located on the west side of the city of Dubuque, Iowa at 2007 Radford Road. It is one of largest thirteen elementary schools in the Dubuque Community School District with a student population of 574 and current staff enrollment of 71. Our school is proudly named after George Washington Carver, noted scientist and inventor.
Carver staff, parents and business partners are involved in school based decision making. Our strong Parent Teacher Organization (PTG) has sponsored or contributed to: SMARTboards & document cameras in every classroom, iPads for all teachers, funding for student field trips, Open House picnics for families, Family Fun Night, Teacher Appreciation Week events/gifts, our Annual Fundraiser, and much more. A supportive volunteer network assists in helping George Washington Carver Elementary School succeed in improving student achievement.
Carver Principals:
Pat Meade (2007-2008)
Cindy Steffens (2008-2017)
Joe Maloney (2017-present)
George Washington Carver's Name Selection
BY: HAEJIN HAN ('14) and CALI SMITH ('14)
Parents sometimes name their child after another family member or they search for the perfect name in a babybook. But how do you find the perfect name for a school? Do you name it after the top two baby names of the year? If that were the case then our school would have been named Sophia or Aidan Elementary. Instead, 58 other names were submitted to the school board as the perfect name for the new west end school. Did you know that the board narrowed that list down to three names? They were: George Washington Carver, Rosa Parks, and Grant Wood. After a public forum meeting on November 26th, 2006, the school board chose George Washington Carver. We think our school is lucky to be named after a fascinating inventor, artist, scientist and teacher! At an early age, George Washington Carver developed a love for nature. He started to study plants and became known as the "Plant Doctor" because he helped neighbors tend to sick and ailing plants. Nature influenced Mr. Carver and his life goal to become an agricultural scientist and educator. When he achieved this goal, he could have chosen fortune and fame, but he chose happiness and honor. Carver said, "Earth is not just a treasure house to be ransacked and plundered and to be profited from. It is our home and a place of beauty and mystery and God's handiwork."
Carver Cougars the Chosen Mascot
BY: EMMA DESHAZIER ('12)
What animal would represent George Washington Carver Elementary as the school's mascot? The possibilities were endless, so the first week of school, Carver principal Mr. Pat Meade announced that a contest would be held to determine what the mascot would be. Students were asked to submit ideas along with a drawing. Some of the options that were considered included the Carver Gators and the Carver Peanuts. On October 26th, 2007, Carver students and staff voted for the Carver Cougar as their favorite mascot. Fifth grader Chantel Schmitz submitted the winning idea, which is the perfect representation of what it means to be a member of the Carver family. The cougar represents leadership and a take charge kind of attitude which is useful to accomplish goals in life. Five years later the Cougar logo can still be found in the gym and on many accessories. The Carver Cougar often makes special appearances on Spirit Day, when students wear the magnificent Cougar with pride!