Is This What an Elite School District Looks Like?

When we think of overcrowded schools, where music rooms do double duty as lunch rooms and learning support sessions are held in storage areas and closets, we don’t think of wealthy suburban districts. However, one of the school closing options being considered by the School Board tonight would create this situation right here in Elmbrook.

Closing both Hillside and Tonawanda will put the remaining four schools at section capacity levels between 94.4 percent and 108.5 percent, with 100 percent of available sections utilized. Not only does this situation allow zero space for future growth other than increasing class sizes, but a survey completed by the school principals shows that it will have a profound effect on conditions for currently enrolled students.  

At Burleigh, the back of the cafeteria would have to be converted into a music room. At Swanson, students will have to double up for gym classes. The conditions at Dixon and Brookfield El would be particularly troubling, with packed grade-level classrooms, loss of support and/or specials classrooms, and a potential need for Brookfield police assistance to maintain safe traffic conditions during Parent-Pick Up. Furthermore, scheduling issues at the two schools will mean that blocks of reading and math instruction will have to be interrupted by specials such as art and music, and ALL schools will have limited space for special education, with learning support, interventions, GT, speech and SPED sessions relegated to office areas, storage spaces, and closets. 

The effects of closing either Hillside OR Tonawanda, while not as dramatic, are significant as well. Closing Hillside will put Swanson at 103.3 percent capacity, while closing Tonawanda will put both Dixon and Burleigh 10 percent over the 85 percent target capacity goal set by the district (95.8 percent and 94.4 percent, respectively).

The School Board maintains that their goal is to close the budget gap without jeopardizing current programs or the district’s ability to achieve academic excellence. It’s difficult to see how overcrowded schools and classrooms, interrupted instructional time, and lack of sufficient space for learning support and specials adhere to these guidelines. In fact, putting our schools in this situation will serve only to chip away at the very structure responsible for last year’s much–lauded ACT scores. 

Let’s hope the board — and the community — realizes this before it’s too late.

http://www.elmbrookschools.org/index.php?option=com_rubberdoc&view=doc&id=1087&format=raw