Students line up to get into a school bus after their first day at Johns Hopkins Elementary.

Little was overlooked on the opening day of class for Iberia Parish’s second-largest elementary school, not even the routine checks for bubble gum.

More than 650 students walked into the doors of Johns Hopkins Elementary School Thursday, the multi-million dollar facility that consolidates Johnston Elementary, Hopkins Elementary schools and portions of Live Oak prekindergarten school.

Aside from a few parking snafus, the day went off without a hitch, Principal Pamela Richardson said. Though the school is just about complete, its main parking lot won’t begin construction until Hopkins Elementary is demolished.

Superintendent of Schools Dale Henderson said demolition is scheduled to begin in the next two weeks.

Next to North Lewis Elementary, which has approximately 730 students, Johns Hopkins stands as one of the largest elementary schools in the parish.

“We began planning for this day back in January,” Richardson said Thursday. “There’s a saying – ‘prior preparation prevents poor performance.’ That’s what we put into place.”

Between 500-600 parents and students were in attendance on Wednesday for the school’s parent/student orientation, which Richardson said was encouraging.

“We were so excited. A lot of dads came into the building,” she said. “We really had a very positive experience.”

Fifth-grader Brandon Nedford said the new cafeteria is the school’s best asset. But overall, he said he’s pleased with the facility.

“It’s really cool,” he said. “It think it’s fabulous.”