Last week wasn’t just the first day of school forcollege-aged SMU students.

Thirty-three children ranging from 2 months to 5 years of agemarked the beginning of their school year with the dedication of anew playground at the SMU Preschool and Childcare CenterFriday.

There is more to the playground than run-of-the-mill monkeybars. The playground which is located on the southwest corner ofcampus, features three teddy bear sculptures. The sculptures, giftsfrom the Crowe family, double as play equipment and focal pointsfor the overall beautification of the area.

“Let’s face it, the drive down Hillcrest isn’tone of the best-looking areas on our beautiful campus,” saidMartha Coniglio, the assistant vice president of University Events.”[The playground] definitely brightens up thelandscape.”

The project has been in the works since summer 2001 explainedchief business and financial officer Morgan Olsen.

He is also the head of Campus Planning and Plant Operations.Olsen saw the Crowe family’s gift a great opportunity tobenefit the campus’ landscape master plan.

While Olsen was a major player in getting the project off theground, he said that Bobby Lyle, a former member of the Board ofTrustees, was the main catalyst in improving the preschoolplayground.

Lyle, founder and current president of Lyco Energy, donated mostof the funding for the project.

The playground makes the SMU daycare center a better place forthe students and faculty who use the facility.

“It’s great for the families,” SMU employeeJenna Hyatt said. “It’s more like a park than aplayground almost because of the landscape, the shade and thebenches.”

Hyatt likes that it gives the working families a chance to knoweach other.

“We run into other parents on campus, even go to otherchildren’s birthday parties,” she said.

To be able to use the center, a parent must be on the SMUpayroll or enrolled in classes.

This is especially helpful to families in which both parentswork for the university.

Hyatt’s husband Gary is a coach on Phil Bennett’sfootball staff. The Hyatt’s two children attend the daycarecenter. Tommy, their oldest son, now 4 and a half, has attendedsince he was only 4 months old.

Hyatt also estimated that of the 33 children who are in theprogram, 80 percent are faculty-members’ children, while theother 20 percent are students’ children.

Whatever the case, it appears that the playground will beappreciated but perhaps not as much as the ladies who work dailywith the kids.

“It’s such a great program for the kids,”Olsen said. His 13-month-old daughter Mia is one of the few infantsin the program.

“[Mia] wasn’t even a twinkle in our eye when theprogram got off the ground. Now, we’re so glad we can benefitfrom it and know that she can enjoy it.”