No State Aid For Grover Cleveland School Expansion, Superintendent Says

CALDWELL, NJ — For several years, the Caldwell-West Caldwell Board of Education has been exploring ways to increase space in the district. One of the ideas that has been floated is the construction of an addition at Grover Cleveland Middle School, which could help to create a full-day kindergarten program, administrators say.

But now that the state has declined to provide debt service aid for the proposal, is it dead in the water?

Last winter, CWC Superintendent James Heinegg said that the construction of a new wing at GCMS would allow the building to become a grades 5 to 8 facility, and would free up sufficient space at the elementary schools to allow for a full-day kindergarten program.

• See related article: Caldwell-West Caldwell Students Need More Space, School Officials Say

Heinegg said at the time that the next steps included having an architect complete plans for state officials to review, and then for the state to determine what percentage of the project would be eligible for aid from New Jersey.

That percentage turned out to be zero, Heinegg recently stated.

“In February 2017, the district sent to the New Jersey Department of Education a proposal for building an addition at Grover Cleveland Middle School,” the superintendent wrote on Aug. 17. “We were recently informed that the state is declining to provide debt service aid for the proposal, which would mean that local taxpayers would fund the entire cost of the project.”

For comparison, the state is funding about 40% of most of the district’s current facilities projects, Heinegg stated.

He continued:

“The Board of Education is committed to providing the community as soon as possible with viable options for full-day kindergarten and other educational initiatives which require more space. Given the significant financial impact of the state’s decision, however, we also feel it is important to continue to gather community input and to reconsider all options.”

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WHAT’S NEXT?

Heinegg discussed the district’s future plans at GCMS in the wake of the state’s decision at a Board of Education meeting on Aug. 29.

“Essentially, my presentation reviewed the rationale for creating additional space,” Heinegg recapped. “While the education that we provide our students is of very high-quality, creating additional space would give us the ability to develop several valuable programs. The key benefits are that we could provide dedicated rooms for full-day kindergarten, allow for development of more in-district special education programs, promote design-based pedagogy, and handle enrollment spikes without affecting the arts and other programs.”

Heinegg continued:

“Last spring, the main option the BOE was considering was an addition to GCMS. Due to the lack of debt service aid, though, the BOE is now looking to re-consider all other possible options for additional space. I will be holding a series of open agenda meetings over the next few weeks to gather input.”

• See related article: Caldwell School Officials Are Pondering Full-Day Kindergarten

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