On A Tight Schedule—

Project Setback Worries School Officials

By Martha Coville

The proposed expansion project at the Newtown High School may not be “dead in the water,” but it has come up against a major stumbling block. The Board of Selectman’s refusal to bond the $38,826,000 requested for the project came a surprise to parents and to the Board of Education. At its meeting on Monday, March 17, the Board of Selectmen voted 2-1 against the project.

School officials are concerned because the expansion plan is running on a very short timeline. The Board of Education had depended on imminent approval from the Board of Selectmen, so that they could put the project out to bid immediately. They had also requested that the selectmen add the project to the April 22 town budget referendum. Without quotes from contractors, the Board of Education, which estimates the expansion cost at $38,826,000, will not be able to provide voters with a precise price, as required by the state.

Also information on the project must be submitted to the state by June 6. Missing the June 6 deadline will mean that the town will not be eligible for state reimbursement this calendar year.

The Board of Education and school district employees are reluctant to delay the project for several reasons. They cite concerns about the high school’s status with the New England Association of Schools (NEASC), which as placed the school on warning for overcrowding, among other reasons. If overcrowding continues, board member Lillian Bittman said, NEASC may place the school on probation. She said that colleges are hesitant, or even refuse, to accept students who have not graduated from an accredited school.

Further, Ms Bittman and Superintendent Janet Robinson agreed that if the project does not begin immediately, overcrowding will actually become worse. The seventh grade class at Newtown Middle School is significantly larger than any single grade currently enrolled in the high school.

Dr Robinson said, “This is not a school problem, this is a community problem. If the high school remains on warning, that is not okay” for a town possessing the resources Newtown commands.

Board of Education members said they were as surprised by the selectmen’s decision as Dr Robinson, who said the news was “really quite a shock.” Board of Education Vice Chairman Lisa Schwartz said, “It’s sad news. It’s alarming news.”

Kathy Fetchik, also on the Board of Education, also said she was surprised.

One parent, Sara Beier, who spoke the March 18 Board of Education meeting, said that the decision should not have surprised the board. Members had failed to impress the selectmen, she said, because none of them had attended the selectmen’s meeting. Ms Fetchik was the sole exception; she joined the meeting late, after attending another meeting.

Although board member Anna Wiedemann said she had obtained a copy of the agenda for the Board of Selectmen’s meeting, and had forwarded it to every member of the Board of Education, other members said they were not aware that the Board of Selectmen planned to vote on the project on March 17. Ms Bittman said she felt “an onerous sense of responsibility,” and Ms Schwartz also said she should have been present.

Board of Education Chairman Elaine McClure said, “Clearly, we should have had someone there. But it would have been nice if someone in the selectmen’s office had let us know,” about the vote on the agenda.

The Board of Selectmen posted the agenda in the town hall, as required by Freedom of Information (FOI) laws. However, the agenda was not posted on the town’s website, which is its usual habit. FOI laws require only the agenda be publicly posted in the town hall.

“Clearly,” Ms McClure said, “I would have been there if I could.” Ms McClure is in Florida this week. She did not attend the March 17 Board of Selectmen meeting, the March 18 Board of Education meeting, or the March 19 Legislative Council meeting. “It seemed like a calm week to be away,” she said.

Ms Beier said that the Board of Education had done a poor job in presenting their project to the Board of Selectmen. First Selectman Joe Borst, and Selectmen Paul Mangiofico and Herb Rosenthal all acknowledge the need for an addition to the high school, she said. Further, she said, all three have a history of supporting education projects. “You have a first selectman who ran on a platform of prioritizing education spending,” she said, “and a selectman who served on the Board of Education for 12 years, and a third who was on the Board of Education for five years.”

At a PTA meeting on Wednesday, March 19, at Reed Intermediate School, 60 or 70 parents expressed outrage and frustration. Ms Bittman urged them to make their voices heard in town by writing letters to The Bee, calling elected officials, and attending town meetings.

At the PTA meeting, parent Laura Helmig said, “My husband has said, ‘If this doesn’t pass, we’re moving. We’re not paying all this money in taxes for schools we can’t use.’”

 Jen Madej said overcrowding at the high school is already affecting housing prices. Her house is on the market, she said, and just this weekend, she lost a bidder, who opted to live in New Milford because they believe the schools are better there.