“Many topics still under consideration at first of two community forums” |
| Many topics still under consideration at first of two community forums Posted: 09 Oct 2010 10:27 PM PDT KINDERHOOK —Nothing seems to be off the table. How the Ichabod Crane School District should respond to a steadily declining student enrollment, coupled with decreasing revenues and increased mandated expenditures, was the topic of a brainstorming session between community residents and district board member and officials Thursday. Consolidation with other districts was spoken of, and the closing, leasing or selling of Martin Van Buren School is an option. About 40 people attended the first of two Community Forums. The second will be conducted 7 p.m. Oct. 28 in the Middle School Library. The evening began with presentations on the declining enrollment, the state of the facilities, the budget and academic achievements. The high school, constructed in 1956, serves 695 9th through 12th graders in 124,284 square feet, board member Ed Harsen said. The middle school, erected in 1972, educates 453 6th through 8th graders in 108,000 square feet. The primary school, dating to 1966, has 412 kindergarten through second-graders in 54,912 square feet. Martin Van Buren Elementary School educates 207 3rd through 5th graders in 23,842 square feet; and Martin H. Glynn has 202 3rd through 5th graders in 31,450 square feet. "The district has to look at all programs," Harsen said. "We want to keep this going forward. Do the buildings match that?" He pointed out that Martin Van Buren cannot have an elevator due to historic restrictions, and so special needs students requiring elevators have to be educated at Martin H. Glynn School.K-5 enrollment is 13.5 percent over the functional operating capacity, he said; 6-8 enrollment is 37.5 percent under functional operating capacity; and 9-12 enrollment is 10 percent above functional operating capacity. Overall, K-12 enrollment is 5.3 percent below capacity, Harsen said. Board member John Antalek said district enrollment is down from 2,300 students in 2005 to 2,000 students at present. Other Columbia County districts are in the same boat. While the district's $37.7 million budget is down a little this year, state aid is declining at a faster rate, he said. Board President Andrew Kramarchyk gave an extensive list of recent accomplishments of ICCSD students and academic programs. Ichabod grad and parent Pete Hunter asked whether the district has considered consolidating with other districts. Kramarchyk said shared services arrangements are being worked out with Maple Hill in Schodack, Chatham and New Lebanon. Pat Harbron of Kinderhook said, "If we're looking at more enrollment loss over the next years, and so less demand on resources, less need for personnel because there are fewer students, and a decrease in pensions and health care, will we see a drop in taxes?" There were three different answers to this. Harsen said fewer students meant fewer families and thus, fewer sources of tax revenue. Antalek said state aid to the district is based on enrollment. Neither of these answers satisfied Harbron. Then Superintendent Lee Bordick gave it a different slant. "Back in my day, the American educational system was different," he said. "The economic base supported students who had just graduated. The manufacturing industry allowed them to go into the work force." But times have changed, he said. "This year, the state Education Department has promised a policy change that will be of significance to all residents. All students would graduate in 12 years [and be eligible for] college without remediation," Bordick said. "The consequence of this is a significant increase in staffing. The mandates are going up, and that creates the complexity." Marcia Anderson, a 1962 ICC graduate, parent of graduates, and former school board member, supported keeping Martin Van Buren open and moving the district offices from the main campus to Van Buren's first floor. Kramarchyk said that was a possibility that could free up classroom space in the middle school. Another possibility would be to rent space to BOCES for a satellite office. But, he asked, what are the Americans with Disability Act issues, since the multi-story Van Buren School lacks a handicapped elevator. After discussing the building for 10 years, he said, "you reach an Aha! moment: We need to do something." Middle School Principal Tim Farley said the administration offices in the middle school have no sunlight, so he wouldn't want children in them all day long. District resident Renee Shur said she thought there was an "understory" to all the presentations. "I don't have the outlines of what you see as challenges," she said. Bordick said the big picture is that the revenue stream has dried up throughout the state. After the budget was passed, the expected state aid for every school district was slashed, he said. On top of that, the STAR program was reduced by 1.1. percent. "Thus the district lost more than $200,000 in state aid," Bordick said. "Now there are rumors the [state] legislators will come back after the election and reduce state aid even further. There are consequences, some not pleasant. That's why this board chose to engage in conversation with the community." Board Vice-President John Phillips responded to Shur's question by saying that the board wanted to hear from residents several times before putting together a multi-year plan. For the same reason, it has been collecting voter surveys at every district election for the past five or six years. Andrew Pelletieri, whose two daughters graduated from Ichabod, asked what percentage of the district's school-age children are being home-schooled or going to private schools. "What efforts are being made to bring these students back? More students mean more aid," he said. Kathy Boyd of Kinderhook noted that one of the presentations showed Martin Van Buren being 5 to 10 percent over capacity. If that's the case, why close it, she wondered. Harsen listed some of the reasons Van Buren is a "particular case." The computer office, he said, is in the basement, which is kind of damp. Since the building is in an historic district, there are a limited number of changes that can be made. ADA requirements present a "huge hurdle," he said. "The classrooms are small," he said. "there's no way you could fit 28 students in one." Boyd said historic restrictions do not prevent the building from being renovated on the inside. "I keep hearing how onerous the historic district is," Pelletieri said. "But with proper planning I'm sure it would bear fruit if necessary." He said he didn't think the board should rush into selling the building. "It's tempting to market an asset and make a killing." Mark Reynolds, who had three children graduate from Ichabod and who served on the Board of Education for 14 years in the 1970s and 1980s, said the issue of Van Buren was discussed in 1978 and 1982. "The cost to keep it open with no students was $287,000 a year," he said. "Whether it's conducive to education, the question remains. Enlarging class sizes is impossible. It seems to me that the building could be sold, to the town or to private enterprise. There are a lot of options." Kramarchyk said if the building were leased to BOCES, the district wouldn't be responsible for the utilities. "If we can stop sending buses and food there, and consolidate the teachers into one building, there would be a lot of cost savings there," he said. "I'm for leaving Martin Van Buren open," said resident Jim Di Goia. "The enrollment is slipping, but that's a projection. What if the economy improves? You might end up building a new building. The board has to look at space usage." Pelletieri also said he'd like to see the fields behind Van Buren used for photovoltaics. Harsen and Antalek both contended that photovoltaics are not cost-effective to put on large buildings. "The amount of money to pay back the loan over a 15-year period doesn't cover what you'd save," Harsen said. "Even selling it back [to the grid]." Antalek said the delivery charges are "fairly significant" to commercial institutions. Anderson suggested a low-interest loan from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. Another topic discussed at some length was the three-year-old football program. Anderson said the highest number of sports injuries is in football. "If we adopt football, you are just sending our boys to have traumatic brain injuries," she said. She said she wouldn't want to see a lot of money going into the football program while teachers are being laid off. But Kramarchyk said the program is entirely self-supporting. The Booster Club raised $58,000 in the program's first year, "roughly in the mid-forties" in its second year, and just below $40,000 for this year, he said. He added that 62 percent of voters are in favor of the football program, but 61 percent opposed having any taxes go to it. Similar topics, such as class size, curriculum and the annual budget and tax levy, are likely to come up at the Oct. 28 forum. To reach reporter John Mason, call 518-828-1616, ext. 2266, or e-mail jmason@registerstar.com. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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