Newton School Committee Approves Burr Elementary Buffer Zones

The Newton School Committee last night voted unanimously to approve recommended "buffer zones" that would alleviate some space strain at . 

The buffer zones, , will move some families from the Burr district into or . 

According to Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education Joe Russo, six families will be affected by the buffer zones.

"We have come to a place at Burr where we’re looking at enrollment numbers that are larger than anticipated," Russo said at the May 14 meeting.

Without the buffer zones, Burr would need to add a 19th classroom for the 2012-2013 school year. This would result in the loss of the school's art room.

The buffer zones, , only apply to families with new students; students with siblings already in the system do not need to move schools if they are in the buffer zone.

Last week, the committee held an interactive public forum on the proposed buffer zones. However, no one from the public spoke at the hearing.

But during last night's public comment period, Newton Parent David Stewart stood up to express his concern about the buffer zone process, as his daughter is one of the affected students. 

Stewart told the committee his family did not receive notification of last week's public forum and only just recently found out about the buffer zones from a neighbor. His daughter, who was supposed to attend Burr, will now attend Franklin.

"It's very distasteful," Stewart said. "This is not the reason why I moved my family to Newton five years ago."

Due to the late notification of the school change, Stewart said he missed the deadline to register his daughter for Franklin's after-school care, something that is essential for his family. 

Both the School Committee and Russo apologized for the trouble Stewart's family has had to go through with the buffer zones. Russo said he is currently working on finding after-school care space for Stewart's daughter.

Next year, Russo said he and the administration hope to present buffer zones earlier on, in order to make the transition for buffer zone families as easy as possible.

Russo assured the Stewarts and other families that regardless of the elementary school, the students will be receiving an "excellent education."

"This is a period of time that is challenging, but once families are in school the kids are happy in their school," Russo said last night. "The people who were concerned last year [about the buffer zones] are very satisfied with the solution at this point."