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2008-01-17: Continued consideration of school building configuration

Last night, the School Committee decided that, should the district move to a 2 1/2 school configuration at the elementary level, Claypit and Happy Hollow would each house grades 1 through 5 in a neighborhood model. All kindergarten classes would move to Loker, with the idea that kindergarten would return to Claypit Hill and Happy Hollow when enrollment permits. While this decision was not clear-cut, the balance of factors including building configuration, building condition, and transportation favored the selection of Happy Hollow over Loker.

The School Committee also revisited the broader question of whether or not to move to the 2 1/2 school configuration for next year (2008-2009). Back in November, the Committee concluded that keeping all three elementary schools open in their current configuration (K-5 at each) was advisable. Since that time, after many hours of analysis by our administrators and discussion by the Committee, we have deemed it appropriate to revisit that conclusion. Specifically, the November conclusion assumed that the Finance Committee guideline would be sufficient to preserve level services; that was in fact not the case, with sizable cuts to co-curricular activities and other important areas necessary to balance the budget. The following factors inform the ongoing discussion.
  • With respect to classroom space needs, 2008-2009 is the first year that the 2 1/2 school model will be feasible, with some modifications necessary and a recognition that the schools will be quite full


  • Based on enrollment trends, the 2 1/2 school model would almost certainly be put in place for 2009-2010


  • On average across the district, elementary class sizes will not increase in 2008-2009 over the current 2007-2008 level with a 2 1/2 school configuration


  • Educational issues and family logistics will be more complicated at the elementary school level relative to the current three school configuration


  • Co-curricular activities are a critical piece of an appropriately balanced education


  • Making this plan work requires successful passage of the proposed operating override in April; should that override fail, considerable cuts will be required, significantly driving up class size and jeopardizing co-curricular activities
As you can imagine, it is not possible to adequately condense the extended conversation over more than two months into a single newsletter issue. The considerations above are necessarily a simplification of a complex decision-making process.

Further, we appreciate that no decision that we can make for the 2008-2009 school year will fully please everyone. Our aim is to arrive at a budget and a plan for the system that best preserves our system in the spirit of our mission statement and core values. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or comments.

Our next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, January 22nd, at 8:00pm (following an executive session) in the School Committee meeting room on the second floor of the Town Building (full meeting schedule).

Thank you for your attention,
Wayland School Committee
www.waylandschoolcommittee.org

The Committee welcomes community input by phone, email, letter,
and attendance at public meetings and forums (schedule).

This newsletter is archived online at www.waylandschoolcommittee.org/newsletter.htm