Community tours middle school to explore plans for new facility

CROMWELL — Nearly 100 community members turned out for the May 5 Cromwell Middle School Building Committee meeting at the current middle school to learn about plans for a future facility.

The committee provided tours of the building with images at each tour stop, showcasing the possibilities for a proposed new school, according to a news release.

Teachers throughout the building shared the obstacles they face in an aging facility, while also providing information about what they could give students in a modern facility with ample electricity, adequatesized classrooms and modern technology, the press release said.

Committee Chairwoman Rosanna Glynn and current middle school teacher, district parent, and longtime resident Jane Sarnowski, who attended the school herself, gave a presentation.

“Additions were added to adapt to growing a population, but no significant renovation” were made, Glynn said in a prepared statement. “A new school would provide increased security features, allow for a STEAM curriculum, and provide a more logical layout with a STEAM hub and media center at the heart of the proposed school.”

“Now is the time for Cromwell to truly place students first and provide our kids a building where they can engage in 21stcentury learning, in a safe building where all students are included,” Sarnowski said.

The committee is working on a June 30 grant submission deadline to the state. Before grant submission, the project will need to be approved by the Town Council and Board of Finance, which is anticipated to take place this month before going to a special town meeting in early June, the statement said.

A 2016 study commissioned by the Cromwell Board of Education established that the existing Cromwell Middle School building not only requires significant renovation, but cannot currently support a modern, 21st-century curriculum. The committee voted to recommend building a new middle school to the west of the current school within the same campus.

To learn more about the project, visit bit.ly/3LwLWcE and follow the committee’s Facebook page at Cromwell MiddleSchoolBuilding Project.

Cromwell Board of Education / Contributed photo Nearly 100 community members joined the Cromwell Middle School Building Committee May 5 at the current middle school to learn about plans for a future facility.