PUBLIC SCHOOL UPDATE
Public School Facilities
The following memo
was presented to the public at the November 21, 2002 public school meeting:
Over the past
several months, the Board and Administration have become keenly aware of the
severely deteriorating conditions of the district's educational
facilities. Experts we have called upon
to assess our facilities tell us that our school infrastructure ranges in age
from 32-85 years. We also know that none
of the schools has been comprehensively upgraded since the time of original
construction--even though several thousand students and staff spend the most of
their daytime hours in these facilities year after year. To put this into perspective, think of your
home or apartment dwelling and the impact of such a lack of attention for 30 or
more years.
This Board and
this Administration believe public school children should be educated in
adequate facilities and the state requires that we do so. In fact, we are required by the Department of
Education to fix problems and provide children with adequate classroom
space. Some of our facilities can be
rehabilitated. Others --specifically the
Lincoln and Cleveland Schools--are considered to be so obsolete that replacement
is recommended by experts and by the state.
Renovation and replacement of schools cost money and we are keenly aware
that costs will have tax implications.
We have an
opportunity now to access state facilities funding which will reduce the cost
of renovation and replacement of schools.
Thus, time is important in terms of overall cost to taxpayers. What we do and how we do it, however,
requires a lot of public discussion. For
example, the first suggestion was to use property on the corner of Tryon Avenue
and Knickerbocker Road to build one large elementary complex. While such a suggestion might appear
expedient, the Englewood community and the Board believe this property is not
the right place for elementary level education.
We have
deliberated over many other possible scenarios.
We now believe our best course of action is to hold a series of public
hearings in January. We want an
opportunity to explain some of the issues we have been discussing, to get
public input and to listen to ideas we may not have considered. This concerns the welfare and education of
your children and grandchildren. We need
your input and look forward to public discussions with you.
At the present time
the Board of Education has not received any state funds for construction. We believe that a referendum for voters’
approval will take place in early September 2003.
On this referendum,
the voters have the final say. Now that
we have an elected board, we feel confident that the monies they ask us for may
be in a reasonable range and not the $92 million building plan that the previous
Superintendent Dr. Baynes and the politically appointed board had in mind, It was an outrage. This elected board will take into serious
consideration the fact that a large part of the population of Englewood is
composed of senior citizens on a fixed income.
Since the beginning
of the year, approximately 100 students have been suspended. Finally discipline is seriously being
implemented.
We hope that this
will help the students take their schoolwork seriously, so they can obtain
better test scores.
Registration is now
being taken very seriously. If a parent
or guardian does not present the proper documents, their child is not permitted
to enroll. This is a step in the right
direction. We still question the
re-registration process done by Dr. Baynes.
We encourage the Superintendent Dr. Greico and the Board of Education to
look into the files that were reviewed in 1999 because school parents still
contact us about the existence of students attending this school district from
other towns.
As the Board of
Education plans future needs for facilities for our schools, it would be
worthwhile to take a good look at the approximately 44-acre campus of Dwight
Morrow High School. Is it truly
necessary to have so many acres for a high school? Maybe they could sell some of the land they
own, including a valuable one-acre tract on Glenwood Road, which is owned, but
not used, by Quarles School.
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