for 1,100 pupils
now houses 1,400
Building designed
for 1,100 pupils
now houses 1,400
By dave benjamin
Staff Writer
Once again the members of the Manalapan-English-town Regional School District Board of Education have been told something they already knew.
MEMS is maxed out.
The Manalapan Englishtown Middle School (MEMS), Millhurst Road, "was basically designed for 1,156 students. Our current enrollment is 1,400," Principal Robert Williams told the board in his "State of the School Report." "We’re fortunate this year because we’ve lost a couple of students this year."
What Williams was really telling the board was that this year the middle school didn’t gain as many pupils as had been anticipated, so there are fewer students numerically per class.
MEMS enrolls all of the K-8 district’s seventh- and eighth-grade pupils.
Williams said eighth-grade class sizes are running between 32 and 34 students. "Smaller" classes have about 28 students per class, he said.
"It’s crowded," the principal said. "When you have 33 or 34 adolescents in a classroom, it’s a lot of kids."
He said overcrowding puts limitations on the programs a school can provide.
"Little increases in enrollment play a big part as far as class size," Williams told the board. "It makes a big difference. That’s what we’re dealing with."
He noted that last year there were classes with as many as 35 students and said the situation affects teachers as well as the children.
Williams said nine teachers, including health and world language instructors, are using carts to teach classes around the school.
"Having teachers on carts is not the best situation," the principal said, noting that the majority of teachers at MEMS cannot use their classrooms during their preparation time.
"If you’re a math teacher and it’s your prep time, you’re out of your class," Williams told the board. "You can’t sit and prepare in your classroom because someone else is coming into your room. It’s not just the teachers on the carts (who are affected); it’s also the teachers who have to get out of their rooms, (who are affected)."
Discussing the facilities in the building, Williams told the board the auditorium is used by a class for six periods each day. Classes in communications and humanities make use of that room.
Faculty rooms are being used as math rooms and the dining room is used for mini-courses such as computer art, mythology, drama, musical theater, U.S. geography and several others. Two rooms in the media center are being used as language arts rooms. The periodical room is now used as a supplemental, or special education, room. The media center itself is used for other classes.
"The building is pretty well maxed out as far as use," Williams said. "We’ve done just about everything, including looking at the storage closets.
"We have two counselors for 1,400 students," the principal said. "If you call around the area, other schools this size have four counselors. That is a concern of mine."
However, Williams said if he had more counselors he’s not sure where he could put them because there is no extra space available.
Reporting on the lunch program, the principal said the first MEMS lunch period starts at 9:58 a.m.
"Some people go to Sunday brunch," Williams said. "Our students go to Monday through Friday brunch. Fortunately, middle school kids will eat anything at any time."
Williams said three of the five lunch periods have more than 300 students each; the other two lunch periods have between 240 and 250 pupils.
"They’re all squeezed in there," he said.
Turning to the issue of locker space, or the lack of space, Williams said, "There are no additional lockers. We’ve added lockers twice so far to the middle school for the clothing, and also to the gymnasium."
Joseph Passiment, the school district’s business administrator, noted that athletic and academic extracurricular activities at MEMS are now being stretched by the number of children who want to participate.
Williams said that so far the school administration and staff have managed under the circumstances by changing programs. He said he has noticed that the "numbers continue to grow."
"We don’t want to wait until they (the numbers) get there, until we do something," he added.
Within the past month, the board authorized an initial study to be conducted to determine if an addition to MEMS can be constructed.
School board President James Mumolie said, "The board is attempting to accomplish a total review of the growth of this district. The state mandates that we prepare a five-year plan which has been accomplished. By the time that the five-year plan is completed you’re already starting the next five-year plan, which in all reality can cause back-to-back referendums in an area like ours where there is substantial growth. The board, assisted by its professional staff, is going beyond the five-year plan to assess the needs of the children of our district in a period from eight to 10 years. This shall avert any possibilities of multiple referendums."