General information
The Primary School of Kryoneri, Corinth, was founded in 1885 and from time to time was housed in various buildings in the village. The original school was erected in 1925, of stone materials, having 3 classrooms, 1 teachers’ office and 1 basement. However, the building was severely damaged in the 1981 earthquake and much of it was demolished, having been declared unsuitable for receiving students. Only one room (stone) was saved which was repaired in 2003 and used as a separate classroom.
In 1982, a prefabricated building replaced the old building, through the efforts of the School Buildings Organisation (Donated by the Onassis Foundation). In 2004, another prefabricated room was placed in the courtyard of the school, next to the stone classroom. Now, the school complex is located in 3 buildings and consists of 6 rooms, 2 teachers’ offices and an event space. There is also an IT lab and ancillary facilities.
Initially, the school had one teacher, but due to an increase in the number of students, several more teachers were hired. In the school year 2004-2005 there were 4 teachers in the primary school, in 2006-2007 five teachers, and from 2012 onward the school has six teachers.
The school bus
In 2006-2007 a school bus was inaugurated, to provide transportation for children and toddlers, from kindergarten to elementary school, from the nearby villages (Gonousa, Paradisi) where schools were no longer operating. Also, the school bus served the villages of Titani and Bozika, where their single-seat schools were merged into the primary school of Kryoneri.
The Kryoneri School is small but dynamic, with good prospects for further development and is located in the semi-mountainous zone of the municipality of Sikyonia, in a rural area of the prefecture of Corinth.
History & Chronology
In 1885, the Prime Minister Sotirios Krokidas, originally from Perigiali, Corinth, established the first school in Kryoneri village, which was the homeplace of his wife, Aikaterini Zarkou. On the exact same plot, in 1959 the Agricultural Club was built, which still operates today as a Cultural Youth Club. In the beginning, the Primary School operated there until the establishment of the Gymnasium (Secondary School).
The Elementary School was moved to 2-3 other buildings, until 1926, when it was housed in the stone school building, which was later damaged during the earthquake of February 24, 1981.
In 1926, the Elementary school was hosted in a new establishment, built out of stone materials, with 3 classrooms and 1 office. The plot, according to the testimony of Theodoros Stamatis (school principal for many years) was much smaller than the current one. However, this building collapsed during the 1981 earthquake and the lessons had to be resumed elsewhere for a few years.
In 1959, the Agricultural Club was built on the same spot where the former 1885 school was. Currently, the Club operates as a Cultural Youth Club.
In 1964, the Kryoneri Gymnasium was inaugurated. The Gymnasium was housed in the same place as the 1926 Elementary School building. It had an afternoon shift program, with lessons of 2-3 hours a day, for 80 to 130 students. The same year, the Elementary School received the visit of the then-Prime-Minister, George Papandreou, accompanied by the US Ambassador and several other ministers and MPs (pictured).
In 1972, the Krioneri Kindergarten was founded and shared the same building as the Elementary School (1926 stone building). The Kindergarden was relocated in 2007 to a brand new building near the Elementary School.
In 1981, the earthquake destroyed most of the 1926 Elementary School, making it unfit for lessons. Apart from one room, the whole building was damaged and the lessons were resumed, in 1982, in a new building, with 4 classrooms (donated by A. Onassis Foundation).
In 2003, the only surviving School room (stone) from the 1981 earthquake was named, in 2006, the “Theodoros Stamatis”, in honour of the former School Principle.
In 2004, the Municipality added an additional prefabricated hall, as the School has been upgraded to 5 teachers in 2006-07.
Since the abolition of the primary schools of Gonousa, Paradisi, Titani and Bozika, the Kryoneri Elementary School became a School Centre for the entire region. The students are transported by the school bus.
