Holmdel board to hear findings tonight
Subcommittees favor
new grades 2-3 facility, Village School expansion
HOLMDEL — The 20-member ad hoc committee on school growth met one last time Monday before presenting its findings to the Board of Education tonight.
One subcommittee which looked at expanding existing schools has suggested adding 11 classrooms to Village School and expanding the Satz School and Holmdel High School complex.
The other subcommittee, which studied the potential for building new facilities, thinks a new grades 2-3 school would help relieve the district’s growth problems.
The subcommittee discussions are not open to the public; however, the discussion between the subcommittees and board President Art Frank are.
At Monday’s meeting, Pat Impreveduto, chairman of the new facilities subcommittee, presented his ideas for a new grades 2-3 school to the entire group. "We feel that we have explored every scenario and feel confident that we have reached the most educationally sound and fiscally responsible idea," Impreveduto said.
Holmdel presently has four schools, the grades K-2 Village School, grades 3-6 Indian Hill School, grades 7-8 Satz School and the high school.
"By moving grades two and three to a new facility, we would be able to explore the possibility for full-day kindergarten classes," Impreveduto said.
According to Frank, the board has never explored the option of full-day kindergarten because there has been no room for it.
"Also, under the state [budget] caps, I do not know if we could go from five kindergarten teachers to the 13 or so that would be needed without a second question on the ballot," said Frank.
Sites for the proposed new school have not been discussed but will be examined and kept confidential, Frank said.
Under the new grades 2-3 plan school, Satz School would remain a grades 7-8 facility and the high school, 9-12. Indian Hill would house grades 4-6 and Village School, K-1.
"However, with the projected numbers, we might consider using four [high school] science labs [as classrooms] in order to free up additional classrooms," said Impreveduto. "And there is an urgent need for a wrestling gym."
Impreveduto told the group that this was the best plan because it would assist in the ability to minimize class size, lessen disruption in classrooms and support the Princeton plan.
In the "Princeton plan," which Holmdel currently follows, every child of the same grade attends the same school, regardless of where he or she lives. In districts which use districting, such as Middletown, which has 12 elementary, three middle and two high schools, students are assigned to schools based on where they live.
"Thus far, the Princeton plan has worked well," Frank said in a previous interview "The board also expressed a clear majority that districting was not really the way we wanted to go."
Although cost was not discussed, Impreveduto said he felt that the new grades 2-3 school would be the most cost-effective way to go.
The subcommittee on expanding the existing facilities, chaired by Jerry Malcolm, then shared its findings.
"We discussed the best way to combat the accelerated school growth in a fiscally responsible and educationally sound manner," said Malcolm. "The population of our schools is estimated to grow at a rate of 4 percent annually."
The committee suggested adding 11 classrooms to Village School, which Malcolm said is currently over its capacity.
"Village School is only supposed to have 592 students," said Malcolm. "It currently holds 694 with both kindergarten classes."
Malcolm said that Village is a large facility which could be renovated without affecting the playing fields.
"The school would stay kindergarten through second grade, now with 11 additional classrooms," said Malcolm.
He added that the committee did not want to add onto Indian Hill School, because, with its recent large addition, it is the newest of the buildings, and any expansion would affect the playing fields.
Malcolm also suggested expanding the complex that holds the Satz School and the high school.
Under this plan, a new art room, music room and gym would be added for use by both Satz and high school students.
The ad hoc committee will present its findings to the board tonight to aid the district in adopting its five-year long-range facility plan, which must be submitted to the state Department of Education by Dec. 15.
Like other regular districts around the state, Holmdel is hoping to get a piece of the $2.5 billion in school construction funding which was approved by Gov. Whitman this summer.
The lion’s share of the funding in the Educational Facilities Construction and Financing Act, some $6 billion, is earmarked for the state’s special needs districts.
The state is expected to approve the long-range facilities plans by March.