History of Randall School

In 1927, the decision was made by the residents of Cortland County to build two new schools, Randall and Parker. The meeting was held on April 1, 1927 and the building of Randall School was approved by a margin of 823 to 491. State aid was authorized in the amount of $75,000 for each school. Additional state aid was expected so that no increase was made on taxes to fund the building of the new schools. The debt incurred by the construction of the new schools was paid off in twenty annual installments with interest.

By June of 1927, the Cortland School board was getting bids on the construction of the two schools. Companies were provided with plans for both schools that consisted of a 16 room school house, complete with an auditorium and gymnasium, estimated to cost $400,000. The Marshall Construction Company of Cortland was awarded the contract as the low bidder on both schools. Mr. Clark, the architect, designed each school to be similar (66 x 118 feet and two stories).

Randall School opened its doors to students in 1928. By February 1930, there was call for the Board of Education to address the issue of the athletic fields. Land adjacent to Randall School was given to the City by a sister of the late Randolph Randall. The Common Council and Board of Public Works decided to give the land to the Board of Education of the City Schools. The School Board recognized the need for athletic fields, and decided to receive bids for the grading and laying out of the new athletic field at Randall. By spring, the athletic fields were complete, with tennis courts, a baseball diamond, and a gridiron field.

Immense discussion was started nearly 18 years after the installation of the fields on whether or not to get lights. Lights would allow for the use of the fields by sports teams at night. Bleachers would also need to be added for spectators. By April 1948, bids were submitted and ranged from $9,900 to $14,175.

Due to growing population and rising enrollment, in 1952 the decision was made to build an addition to Randall School. The addition extended South from the present building. A new gymnasium was built against the present structure and classrooms were installed.

By 1998, the playground had several safety concerns and an upgrade was needed. The old playground structure was donated to Cornell Cooperative Extension, which used the equipment at Camp Owahta in Solon, NY.

Another upgrade to the outside of the school, initiated by Principal Cliff Kostuk, was an addition of a sign. The students at Randall School joined together with the PTO in 2004 to raise money to purchase the sign. Over $4,000  was raised from various means, including collecting pennies, donations, and students selling their own books.

By 2005, Randall School was outfitted with computer labs and students were able to get on the internet with teacher supervision. The technology of 2005 was much different than current technology. One teacher noted the students had to be patient due to the slow speed of the computers.

More recently, Randall School started the Leader in Me program, an extension of Steven Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Successful People. Randall School serves students in grades K-6. However, starting in the 2019-2020 school year, the school will service students in grades 5 and 6, as the District is transitioning to a grade centered model.