Dapo Elementary School

Dapo Elementary became an independent school in 1964, splitting off from a branch program of Fuyuan Elementary. It began with no land, no buildings, and no students of its own — only three teachers and a 33-year-old founding principal, who ran the school out of borrowed classrooms for years before a permanent building was finally completed in 1968. Despite this modest start, enrollment grew steadily, peaking at over 380 students in the 1970s. The school sits near Dapo Pond, one of the most scenic wetlands in Chishang Township, close to the rice paddies that made the area famous.

大坡國小於民國53年（1964年）從福原國小的分班獨立設校。創校之初一無所有——沒有校地、沒有校舍，也沒有學生，只有三位教師與一位33歲的創校校長，靠借用教室苦撐多年，直到民國57年（1968年）校舍才正式落成。儘管起步艱辛，學生人數穩定成長，於1970年代一度突破380人。學校鄰近大坡池，是池上鄉最秀麗的溼地景觀之一，也緊靠著讓這個地方聲名遠播的稻田。