Residents React to School Facilities Survey

A survey about school facilities that was sent to district residents following a presentation by the new district architects has some recipients frustrated and perplexed. At the Board of Education meeting on May 22 school architects BBS proposed to build two large additions to Greenacres School, extending the school to Putnam Road and Huntington Avenue. No measurements and few details were provided, and it was not clear what would be done to the remaining portions of the building. The architects did project that the work would take two and a half years and said that the children would remain in the school during the renovation.

At the meeting, many community members and several members of the Board of Education asked why the possibility of a new school had been taken off the table

The survey confused many who were expecting to answer questions about the future of Greenacres School – but found that the survey did not single Greenacres out or offer a new school as a response to any of the questions. The survey questions treated all elementary schools as equals and failed to note that extensive work has already been done to upgrade and expand the other schools while leaving Greenacres for this next bond offering.

Instead of addressing the issues at Greenacres, it posed general questions about enhanced music spaces, cafeterias/learning spaces and security vestibules, features that were not previously on any list of district priorities as defined by past building committees. It also included a question about building a large cafeteria at the middle school but did not mention that the individual dining rooms in each of the four houses of the middle school would be closed.

Questions were asked about enhancing the Learning Resource Center at the high school and installing district-wide air conditioning. Again, these two items seemed to be ideas generated by the administration without consultation with the community.

At the May 8 meeting of the Board, Dr. Hagerman said that he had hired a "PR firm" to send out surveys to the community following each presentation from the architects. This might be key to why the surveys did not ask the questions people wanted to which residents wanted to provide feedback. Normally a research firm, not a public relations firm would be retained to assess public opinion. In this case, the survey might be more of a tool to sway public opinion then to discern the will of the community.

A new group called the Greenacres Elementary Task Force has produced a video about the proposed renovation that has already received 1,700 views. You can see it by clicking here. They are advocating for the district "to innovate not renovate" and have drafted a petition asking the administration to provide a cost analysis of a new school vs. a renovation including the cost to relocate the students off-site. 

It appears that many younger parents who were sitting on the sidelines and waiting for the school board and the administration to propose a solution for the aging school have now become alarmed because the proposed renovation will leave their children in the school during the 2.5-year construction project.

The school board meets next on the night of June 12 and many are expected to comment.