The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Board of Ed touts ‘sister-school’ model
Amid redistricting talks, city parents want East School to remain open
TORRINGTON — While the Board of Education continued redistricting talks with the public this week, many residents remain opposed to closing East School. That opinion was voiced repeatedly during the committee’s third hearing Monday.
The ad-hoc redistricting committee recommended that elementary education shift to a “sister-school” model, and brought the idea to the full Board of Education for consideration.
Under the sister-school model — Option 2 — kindergarten through third-grade students would be divided between Vogel-Wetmore and Torringford.
Vogel-Wetmore students would move to Southwest for grades four and five, while Torringford students would go to Forbes.
The committee on Monday recommended preschool classes be moved out of the elementary schools — freeing space in crowded buildings — into alternative accommodations. The committee did not specify where the pre-K program would move to, although St. Peter/ St. Francis School was raised as an option.
Before the committee’s votes, parents insisted East School remain open for another year, and other options be explored.
“Let’s do this right and do it once. I ask that a motion be made to delay the closing of East for one year and continue this conversation,” said resident Keith Hudak. “It helps restore faith to the community; it enables us, the parents, to decide for ourselves what is best for our kids.”
“I ask that we reconsider closing East next year, and hold off one more year, to allow for necessary time required for this large undertaking. It does not appear that it can be appropriately thought out, organized, and put in place by September,” said resident Carissa McIntire. “Parents, teachers, and students will all feel more comfortable if every avenue’s been explored, appropriately vetted, and have the final option chosen (be) the correct one for the town.”
Resident Brian Thomas said it was not appropriate to close East School because the district had other issues with the capacity of its schools. He said students are being taught in a stairwell at Southwest School.
“You clearly don’t have enough time to get this done. You can’t even fix the problems you’ve got now,” Thomas said.
Board chairwoman Fiona Cappabianca said the Board of Education had not sought to close East. Rather, the situation had been thrust upon them, especially in the face of impending financial pressure, she said.
Cappabianca and Superintendent Denise Clemons said the district was facing a prospective loss of approximately $700,000 in Education Cost Sharing funding next year, intensifying the need to close a school.
“None of us want this. None of us want to have to go down this road. We would all prefer that everything could stay status quo, but the reality is, it cannot,” Cappabianca said.
“One thing that we’ve been working on is really trying to save the staff, but with the new proposals coming out and the cuts coming out from the state department, there are going to be staff cuts,” Clemons said. “So, it is essential, in terms of the consolidation of buildings, that it is done. That is the only way that we are going to continue to move.”
Clemons said she hopes the loss of ECS funding would be defrayed by money received under the Alliance District program, but that wasn’t a given at this time.
Committee members conducted a straw poll Monday, weighing Option 1, which would create four elementary schools, against Option 2, then followed by voting to recommend the second plan, which was approved 22 to 13, with three abstentions.
The possibility of shifting students to Torrington High School was raised during the meeting. Clemons said the impending accreditation process from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges makes that inadvisable now.
Both options would lead to a reduction in staff, according to an analysis discussed by parent and committee member Jeff Putnam. Approximately 14 staff positions would be cut under the second option — Clemons said they had estimated 16 earlier Monday — compared to roughly eight under the first option.
Clemons said the cost of transportation, raised as a concern with Option 2, would increase by about $350,000 if buses are shared, as opposed to $850,000 if schools have their own.
The Board of Education is set to meet Wednesday.
In November, the board voted to close East School beginning in the 2018-19 school year, either permanently or to allow for repairs, and redistrict the city schools.
The building needs at least $4.4 million in repairs. Renovating it entirely is estimated to cost about $41.4 million, or $18 million after state reimbursement, according to former board member Ken Traub.