OGDEN — Odyssey Elementary School is now more prepared than ever to serve students in need along with their families.

On Thursday, Ogden School District representatives and several other local officials held a ribbon-cutting for the school’s Family Support Center — the first such facility in the state.

The site includes a kitchen, laundry facilities, showers, storage, classrooms and space for families. It is very similar to the teen centers that have been built in several Davis School District high schools and will soon be added to Ogden High School, Ben Lomond High School and the upcoming Ogden Technical High School.

Addressing the audience before the ribbon-cutting, Superintendent Luke Rasmussen said this is the school stepping up to the realities of modern life.

“We have families in our community that are in need and they need our help,” he said. “We have students that are struggling to have their basic needs met. This Family Support Center is going to help bridge those gaps. It’s going to help our students and families, and it’s going to help break down barriers so that we can better educate our students.”

Brynn Murdock of the Ogden Schools Foundation noted that 1 in 10 students in the district experiences homelessness each year.

“We know that these centers are critical in meeting the needs of our students,” she said. “Our students are our future and today is just a glimpse at how the community is supporting and rallying around them to not only allow them to survive, but to thrive in both school and in life.”

Odyssey Principal Sonja Davidson said there is a world that children deserve, and the Family Support Center helps to deliver on that.

“Every child deserves a roof over their head,” she said. “They deserve a kitchen to make a warm meal. They deserve a clean bathroom to take a shower. They deserve a place their families can connect together. And unfortunately, that is not the reality for some of our students. But rather than focus on fatalism and cynicism, a group of community members saw a need and they filled it. They chose hope, and in a small scale, they provided a space that is the world that every child deserves.”

Erica Duncan, a parent advocate at Odyssey, said the facility is a win for the city.

“This is a huge success here for our community,” she said. “Odyssey Elementary has done wonders for our community as far as this new facility that we’re going to be cutting the ribbon on today.”

State Rep. Karianne Lisonbee said a center like this is a boost for families.

“Utah is known for our strong families and they are the foundation of our success here in our state,” she said. “We need to do everything we can to support our families and to strengthen the next generation. Above all, this means ensuring that Utah’s children’s basic needs are met.”

Ogden Board of Education member Arlene Anderson said the Family Support Center will do much more than just be a place for in-need students and their families to go.

“It will provide a safe haven,” she said. “Students and their families will be afforded meals, laundry facilities, computer access and other supportive services. This center will serve as more than just a physical space; it becomes a symbol of community commitment to fostering stability and resilience — a place to call home. It will nurture a path towards self-sufficiency and ultimately help our students, parents and families regain a sense of security and hope for the future.”

Following the ribbon-cutting, officials had a chance to tour the new center.

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