Letter from the Superintendent: Overcrowded and Underutilized Schools, New Hires, Feasibility Study

The following letter was submitted by Drew M. Echelson, Ed.D. superintendent

Dear Waltham Community,

The Waltham Public Schools team is ready and excited for the start of school. We eagerly await the 5,400 students who will walk through our front doors on September 1. I am proud to lead a team of educators who are willing to roll-up their sleeves and do whatever it takes to support students and families and it is my expectation that everyone in the system works to ensure a strong, sustained start to the year. I also write to provide an update on three things: new hires, elementary capacity issues, and high school building project.

New Hires

I am committed to recruiting and selecting talent for the Waltham Public Schools and, whenever possible, cultivating and appointing talent from within the community and district. You can find bios of these new appointments at this link.

We will continue to update these bios as other appointments are made in coming days and weeks.

Elementary Capacity

Let me share a very short summary of the elementary capacity issues we face:

• Waltham has six comparably sized elementary schools.
• Elementary schools were built to accommodate 516 students (with exception of Stanley and Northeast which have capacity for 636 because of space built specifically for Pre-K).
• Some Waltham elementary schools are “overcrowded,” while others are “underutilized.”
• The crowding at two elementary schools (paired in the same pathway to one middle school) will likely lead to enrollment imbalances at the middle schools.
• Ideal elementary enrollment is ~500 students/school. Over the last several months, the School Committee has engaged in several work sessions on this topic and has made significant progress. The School Committee shares my commitment to solving this dilemma in a strategic and thoughtful way. We are also open to creative solutions to the degree that they meet the objectives and guiding principles established by the School Committee. You can find slides articulating the objectives and guiding principles set forth by the School Committee by clicking here.

We understand the urgency of a decision and commit to an aggressive timeline for decision-making that also allows for significant community engagement and is not so urgent that it compromises the quality of the plan. The timeline for decision-making is as follows:

June 24, 2015 School Committee engaged in four-hour work session dedicated to issues related to elementary capacity.

August 5, 2015 Superintendent and School Committee engaged in four-hour work session to review 5 concepts that might achieve objectives outlined by School Committee at June 24 work session.

August 6, 2015 – August 30, 2015 Central office works in collaboration with SC to more fully shape concepts and to formally present at Sept 16 SC meeting. Perhaps an additional work-session in between to check on progress. Mid-August Letter to community from Superintendent to outline process for decision-making and opportunities to engage with issue of overcrowding at some elementary schools.

September 16, 2015 District to present three proposals to School Committee.

September 17, 2015- Mid October, 2015 Community engagement on three proposals. Superintendent with SC representation frame issues/problem and create a forum for community input and feedback. Late October-Early November SC to formally vote on proposals. I have scheduled meetings at most PTOs in late August /September and would welcome an opportunity to discuss these issues, among others. In the coming weeks, we will publish a list of public forums that will happen in mid-September through mid-October. We hope you will be able to participate.

My next communication to the community--to be sent in the coming weeks--will communicate more about the three concepts that we are currently “prototyping.” High School Building Project Principal DeMeo and I have been asked by Mayor McCarthy to co-chair the Waltham School Building Committee.

Much to the credit of Principal DeMeo and his team, we have been successful in being invited into the eligibility period for a new or renovated high school through the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA).

I want to thank Mayor McCarthy, members of the School Committee, Principal DeMeo and his team and many district officials who have positioned us well as we competed in the MSBA process. We currently await a response from MSBA to learn if we have been invited into the feasibility study. We expect to have an update in late September-early October.

If we are invited into feasibility study, our School Building Committee will work closely with architects to study our educational plan for the new high school, the current high school structure, and available pieces of land in the city that could serve as a site for the high school. Thereafter, experts would make recommendations such as: Should we renovate or build a new site? If new site, what is the best location? What are the key features of a new or renovated building based on the educational plan? Principal DeMeo and I are committed to communicating throughout this process. This is an exciting opportunity for Waltham and we want to ensure that we hear from as many stakeholders as possible to ensure our new or renovated high school meets the hopes, dreams and expectations of the Waltham community.

Sincerely,

Drew M. Echelson, Ed.D. Superintendent