School Redistricting – 2/5/2010

Posted by Bob on February 5, 2010 under Daily Blogs | Read the First Comment

Although the ink has barely dried on the JCJ Naugatuck schools feasibility study, passions are already running high with regard to possible grade reconfiguration and closings of existing schools.  Naugatuck is certainly not alone as many districts are looking for ways to reduce costs and better utilize facilities during difficult economic times, while addressing changes to educational needs.

Discussing our children’s education is always a topic that invokes emotion.  The thought of our children possibly going to a different school frightens us.  The notion that a building that has been an educational fixture in our community may no longer be used in the same manner leaves many of us with a sense of loss for days past.  I share with many these fears.

While government reorganization and doing things differently and more efficiently are frequent themes of our administration, the concept of change in my personal life is distasteful.  I am a creature of habit whose aversion to change and routine are the butt of jokes from family and friends.  To my core I am a New Englander, fond of steady habits, Summer vacations at the Cape and the repetitive changing of seasons.  Talk of closing Fenway Park causes an unpleasant physical reaction in my body.  Like many “townies”, I have lived in the same community my whole life, attended the same public schools according to schedule, and frequented the same establishments with fierce loyalty on a regular basis.  I still feel a sense of nostalgic pride thinking about the Naugatuck of my childhood that has long sense come and gone.

My natural reaction to redistricting is similar to that of many other parents.  Disrupting the natural progression of my children’s education from its current path is unpleasant.  Concerns about how my kids would be effected by such a change and how it will effect my life personally immediately come to mind.  I have enough trouble getting my two (2) children on their morning bus as it is.  Closing institutions that have served Naugatuck for generations is just another sign that I am rapidly getting older.

What a reconfiguration debate represents, however, is not only a periodic need to analyze the effectiveness of our existing school facilities, but the economic reality confronting our school district.  While many of us would prefer the comfort of what we know, the ultimate goal is to give our children the best education possible within the confines of what taxpayers can afford.

Resolution of the current year’s school budget crisis was only the beginning of a process that will require further difficult decisions.  Increases in contractual costs and associated health care premiums are on the horizon for the 2010-2011 fiscal year beginning July 1st.  Reductions in overall staff are inevitable, and the Board of Education will consider numerous options to adopt a responsible budget in the coming months.  Unfortunately reconfiguration may well be part of the solution.

The most important principle to be considered during this process is the overall quality of educational services provided.  No firm decisions have yet been made.  The dialogue that will take place should be inclusive and public.  While we all will not agree on the final outcome, it is imperative that all perspectives are voiced.  We all may learn something in the process.  On the first (1st) day of school this coming August, the quality of instruction provided to our children must take precedence over the physical location of their school.

As much as us parents and our school employees fret and debate over school reconfiguration, it is amazing that those who seem least effected by such change are our children.  As a lifelong “East-sider”, the concept of sending my children to any other middle school but City Hill is disturbing to me.  My children, however, do not share their Dad’s parochial view of the world.  Like most kids, Ally and Jay spend their Summers pondering who they will have for teachers, which friends will be in their classes and what activities will be available to enhance their school day.  My guess is that they are not much different than other kids.  Our children are more resilient than we give them credit.

Most students will always be apprehensive about the first (1st) day of school.  As parents, we must remember that adapting to new environments helps prepare our children to confront the uncertainties of adult life.  Unless they are extremely fortunate, switching schools will be a relatively minor experience compared with the changes our children will encounter as they grow.  While our natural inclination may be that of anger or resentment toward reconfiguration, we need to be conscious of the fact that, as parents, our children will follow our lead.  How we react to change will have a significant impact on how our children will respond to different circumstances.

The possibility does exist that at very least one (1) of our schools will not serve in the same capacity when next school year begins.  While many may feel a sense of loss, it will not be the first nor the last time in the Borough’s history that a school will close or change grades.  We live in an information age where one’s ability to learn and grow far outweighs the physical location in which one is educated.  Meeting the growing challenges of providing a twenty-first (21st) century education in a time of economic recession requires tough choices and creativity.  I look forward to a healthy, transparent debate on the various options available.  Once concluded, we must move forward together in the best interests of our students and our taxpayers.