Sussex Avenue Elementary School

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Sussex Avenue Elementary School, before renovations

Credit: TPL Archive

Sussex Avenue Elementary School serves a Central Ward neighborhood where parks and playgrounds are especially scarce. To address the community’s need for green space, The Trust for Public Land is partnering with Congregation Ahavas Sholom, Newark’s oldest operating synagogue. Together, we will transform Sussex Avenue Elementary’s barren asphalt schoolyard into a safe and vibrant green space for children to learn and grow. The partnership is an outgrowth of the synagogue’s passionate pursuit of tikkun olam (repairing the world) and tzedakah (social justice) and The Trust for Public Land’s belief that every child should have a place to play outside. The new playground will include recreation spaces for students from pre-kindergarten to 8th grade, and chess tables to reinforce strategic thinking, important to the school’s focus on math and science. Green elements—such as trees, and gardens for growing vegetables and capturing rain—will enhance outdoor learning while complementing the City of Newark’s efforts to improve water quality and the environment.