Superintendents Discuss What's Next for Bloomfield Hills, Birmingham Schools

Both the Bloomfield Hills and Birmingham public schools are where they need to be heading into the coming school year, the leaders of the respective districts said at an education forum Wednesday.

Despite continued controversy over the recall of all seven members of the school board, Bloomfield Hills Superintendent Rob Glass said plans to merge Andover and Lahser high schools are well underway.

“There is no alternative for us,” Glass said at , hosted by the at the . “We will work toward how that gets arranged.”

Glass was joined by Birmingham Schools Superintendent David Larson, at the event moderated by Birmingham Eccentric editor Greg Kowalski. Community members had the opportunity to question both superintendents on issues facing their districts, including state cutbacks, the merging of Andover and Lahser high schools and superintendent pay.

Merger talk unavoidable

Just as it dominated the majority of his first year leading the district, Glass again addressed the timeline for the merger, formally approved by the school board at a marathon meeting in June.

“Last year we spent a lot of time reaching out to the community,” he said. “Last year the focus was outward, now it’s time to focus on our strategic plan.”

The merger won't happen until the 2013 school year, but consultants and district officials are hard at work. Glass said the district will continue working out details of the merger plan, including how to split up the grades.

As for combining the two districts — another issue raised by an audience member — the answer was clear: not anytime soon. While both districts continue to work closely with each other, Glass said a move like that is “easier said than done.”

Budgets continue to be an issue

Larson said will be putting an even greater emphasis on teacher collaboration and implementing new technology — including interactive whiteboards — in the classroom.

Paying for these projects costs money, however while Glass and Larson acknowledged state cuts to public schools have been less than ideal, both districts are in good shape financially.

This summer, the . As a result, programs have been maintained in both districts and an addition of 100 students to the Birmingham district last year helped boost its budget even more.

“We are really in a position of stability, but are wary,” Larson said.

Voters will also have a chance to weigh in on how the Birmingham board has handled its budget this fall, with a millage renewal and two school board seats on the Nov. 8 ballot. Both superintendents noted the steps they’ve taken to help their budgets, including freezing administrative pay at Birmingham while Glass said he and his executive staff took a 5 percent pay cut this year.