L.E. Berger Elementary
History of L.E. Berger Elementary
Our school is named after L.E. Berger, who was the superintendent in West Fargo from 1936-1972. Mr. Berger started teaching in West Fargo in 1935. In 1936 he was appointed superintendent. During his time as superintendent, many schools were built. These included: North School, West Fargo High School, South Elementary, Eastwood Elementary, and the West Fargo Middle School. Harwood and Horace were also added to the school district. In honor of Mr. Berger's outstanding leadership, the West Fargo School Board named the middle school after him in 1966. Later, it became L.E. Berger Elementary School. Mr. Berger retired in 1972. In our school today there are still people who worked with him or knew him. Two of these people are Mrs. Horner and Mrs. Flick, paraprofessionals in our building.
While Mr. Berger was superintendent, he was recognized as being a visionary school leader. He worked hard to get people to vote for new schools. In 1960 he was the recipient of a Fulbright Scholarship and spent one month in Norway and one month in Italy studying their school systems.
In addition to being superintendent, Mr. Berger did many other things in his life. He taught at Ransom County and Kathryn, North Dakota. He was only 18 when he started teaching. In his first year, he made $100 per month. He was also the past president of the North Dakota School Administrators Association. He taught graduate classes at NDSU in 1974, was a member of the Cass County Planning Board, and served in the state legislator from 1975-1979. He also served as president of the Cass County School Administrators and the North Dakota Administrators Association.
L. E. Berger was born in Fort Ransom, North Dakota, on February 7, 1907. "L.E." stands for Leif Erling. He was the third child in his family, and he was all Norwegian. He went to Valley City State College and received his masters' degree at the University of North Dakota. Mr. Berger married Dorothy Berger on August 14, 1938. They had four boys and one girl, six grandchildren, and three great grandchildren.
L.E. BERGER PROGRAM OFFERINGS:
- L.E. Berger offers a challenging and quality educational program for our children. L.E. Berger has a diverse population and represents many different cultures and languages. We celebrate our cultural differences and embrace the idea that we are a school where our children demonstrate their Berger Bear Pride through positive actions, determination, good choices, and a willingness to help others.
L.E. BERGER PROGRAMS & SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Art Education
- Attendance Awards
- Breakfast Program
- Computer Lab/Wireless Technology
- Core Curriculum Courses
- Counseling Services
- D.A.R.E.
- YMCA Before/After School Program
- English as a Second Language
- Berger Bear Den Meetings
- Guided Reading Literacy Program
- Homework Room
- Intramural Sports
- Library/Media Center
- Marketplace for Kids
- Music Education
- NCA Accredited
- NWEA MAP
- Parallel Block Schedule
- Physical Education
- Presidential Academic Award
- Presidential Fitness Awards
- PTA
- REACH
- Social Worker Services
- Special Education
- All District TMH Special Ed Students
- Spectacular Skills Awards
- Student Assistance Program
- Title Program
L.E. Berger staff also prides itself on constantly training and keeping up to date on new methods and material in order to provide the best education possible.
