By KAREN RICE
Parents, teachers and students were upset with a redistricting committee report, publicly released about two months ago, which gave the district the option of closing either the Number Four or Number Five school in an effort to save money on under-utilized classrooms.
The board held the meeting last week to allow it and community members another opportunity to discuss the redistricting report and to ask questions. The meeting marked the first time the board has spoken out on the report.
Trustee Kathy Raquet-Barry thanked the committee members for all their hard work and research because they had a difficult job. However, after reviewing the report, Raquet-Barry felt that closing a school was not a good decision for the district.
We had time to review the report, and I do not believe that either option three [which suggests closing the Number Four School] or option four [closing the Number Five School] are something that we should consider at this time, she said. I hope that we can ask our professionals to further consider perhaps the other two options [which suggest either making no changes, changing boundaries or modifying use of some building space]. But at this point, I for one would not consider option three or four.
Trustee Rose Harris, who served on the redistricting committee as a community representative, agreed that, after hearing the community speak against the report, closing a school was not appropriate right now.
As everyone knows, I am a nurse educator by profession, Harris said. I take pride in my listening skills. And I have indeed heard the community. And at this time, in the interest of the children, the education of our children, and the district, I would vote to make no major changes in our building utilization.
Harris added that she would like to see part of a building turned into a child-care center for the district's faculty and staff. I would recommend that the powers-that-be, the various department heads, continue to look at better utilization of the building space, she said. The idea of perhaps having a child-care center for our staff [should] be further investigated.
Trustee Anthony Licatesi said that he had the opportunity to tour some of the schools, and although there was some extra room, he said, There was not as much room as the report had indicated. Licatesi felt that closing a school would preclude any possible expansion of the district in the future.
He added that the most important problem he saw on his school tours was the condition of the buildings. He felt that the district should concentrate more on fixing them up and better utilizing space than closing a school.
The biggest problem that I saw was really the buildings and the shape that they're in, he said. And there were classrooms, there were offices, there were areas that could not really be utilized all of the time because of leaks, because of mold, because of problems. So, I think that once we correct the problems in our schools structurally, then we may be able to go ahead and dedicate a portion, or portions, of some of the schools for other [uses] Ñ whether it's administrators or other offices or things of that nature. But at this time, this district should not close any of its schools.
Trustee Dr. David Sussman agreed that the district should concentrate on fixing all its school buildings while keeping the district's tight financial situation in mind. The buildings need help, he said. And everyone is aware of the financial situation that the state, the county and every district is in. We're going to have to look very hard at how we can save money long-term, because we need to save the buildings. What I heard [from the community], at least at the last meeting, was that it was much more than a building. It was a spirit, it was a concept Ñ at least at Number Five Ñ but all our buildings are like that.
Sussman added that the district must also concentrate on maintaining its resources and programs, and that it is very important for the community to remain active in the budgetary process. The district runs, the heart of the district beats well, because of the resources we put into it, he said. And the resources right now are being threatened due to severe financial problems. I hope everyone still comes down and participates in the budgetary process. We're not closing any schools, [but] we have to be able to maintain the integrity of the programs so that the children don't suffer when we try to get the budget down to where it's going to get accepted.
Michael Fried, Peninsula Public Library board president, was not surprised to hear that the school board had decided not to close a school. The redistricting committee had asked the library if it would be interested in moving into a closed school and out of its present building, which has parking and space problems.
It was not really an expectation that a school would be closed, he said in a phone interview. The redistricting committee came to us and gave something we could consider. Fried added that the library is still considering its building problems and is not ready to jump on any decisions. Right now we are concerned about our space issue and we want to work with the community to get our budget passed.
Barbara Egan, PTA president of the Number Five School and a member of the redistricting committee, felt that the board's decision was reassuring. I think that's what I would expect the board to say with all the people that came to the meetings, she said in a phone interview. I thought is was clear that the community did not want a school closed. And the way they felt was very valid. There was no plan to close a school and the report was not substantial. You can't close a school without a plan. [The board's answer] was what it should be. We have a good board, it makes us all feel better knowing they listen to the community.
