South Windsor School Program To Move

SOUTH WINDSOR, CT — A school program serving young adults with disabilities has been cleared to move into an Ellington Road office building, freeing additional classroom space at the district's crowded high school annex.

The Planning and Zoning Commission approved the district's application for the South Windsor Transition Program during its Aug. 18 meeting, according to minutes posted by the town.

The district plans to lease approximately 6,000 square feet on the first floor of 1170 Ellington Road. The program has operated from the former Wapping Elementary School building at 91 Ayers Road, which has served as a South Windsor High School annex since 2023.

District officials said returning that space to regular classroom use will help accommodate South Windsor's growing enrollment. The district has added about 1,000 students over the past decade while enrollment has fallen in many other Connecticut school systems.

The transition program serves students with disabilities between the ages of 18 and 22 who need additional support before entering adult life. At the time of the application, the program had 18 students and 11 staff members.

Students receive instruction in areas including employment, cooking, household responsibilities, shopping and banking. The district said the Ellington Road location will provide a more practical, community-based setting for that work.

The program operates during the regular school year and holds a condensed four-week summer session. Transportation plans submitted with the application called for seven buses and one passenger van, with changes to the parking lot intended to make student drop-offs and pickups easier.

The district's lease also limits use of the building's second floor to tenants considered compatible with the school program. The property is a professional office building rather than a residential or medical facility.

The commission's approval clears the way for the relocation, although the district's program page continued to list the high school annex as its current location. An opening date for the Ellington Road facility was not included in the approval records.

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