Opinion: Port Chester-Rye School District Assesses Its Progress

A letter to the editor from Port Chester-Rye Union Free School District Edward A. Kliszus, Ph.D., Superintendent of Schools--

To the Editor:

On December 22, 2015 from 7 am - 9 pm at Port Chester Middle School, the Board of Education will be presenting a $41.5M bond to the voters. The bond is needed to pay for a building project that addresses a district top priority of over-crowding at the high school. In addition, outdated facilities both at the high school and around the district will be brought to current technical standards to help ensure that the children in our care have the advantages and opportunities they need and deserve for their future success. This investment will also benefit the homeowner with improved home values.

We currently have the highest enrollment seen in nearly 50 years. In just the last 7 years our enrollment has grown 20 percent. The high school alone will have grown 34 percent by 2019.

Our high school enrollment is 1352 and growing. Compare that to 1970, when our high school enrollment was 1297 – 55 less students than today. Note also that today’s educational programs have changed dramatically and require substantially more space.

It’s important to note also that in 1970 we had three additional elementary schools, Washington, Roosevelt and Horton, properties which were since closed and sold by the district.

This project has been finely crafted after many months of reflection, discussion and study by the board, school administration, and community members. The board engaged an architectural firm on June 19, 2013 as it began its intensive examination of the over-crowding problem. Ultimately, top architects, engineers and construction managers have been engaged. Our architectural firm created the magnificent addition on Park Avenue School that connects seamlessly to the beautiful original building. It also built the new cafeteria/library wing at Edison, several new classrooms at King St, and restored the PCHS auditorium to its original 1930 splendor after having reviewed yearbook photos from the period. The same firm also completed the design and restoration of the PCHS clock tower and library. You would be hard pressed to distinguish between the old and new work completed by these architects and engineers.

The proposed project is responsibly funded. The average homeowner will pay about $13 per month and that $13 per month ($163.05 per year) will not be seen for 2-4 years from now.

The building project is presented in a pictorial format on our website (portchesterschools.org) to give citizens a visual realization of the high school addition and other improvements. You will see that the high school’s early 20th Century details have been carefully protected and preserved.

The additional high school classrooms will facilitate smaller class sizes in existing subject areas while new course options like computer science, digital art and state of the art science labs will provide added venues that help pave the way to college acceptance. A new field-level gymnasium and turf field will permit us to hold championship games and many other events at our home field while providing the means to expand athletic offerings important for college applications.

I was asked recently why we need a new gym, field surface, arts facilities and computer science, particularly when graduation rates continue to improve. This is a great question that I consider within my capacity of an educational leader who strives to teach the “whole student”. So what does that mean? Our students need not only math and English as promulgated by the Common Core but the sciences, research, fine and performing arts, and athletics, which clearly support the tenets of the Common Core while serving to provide our students with a well-balanced educational experience. Imagine our world without artists, poets, sculptors, artisans, musicians, actors, film directors, philosophers, dancers, singers, and athletes…essentially, creative people. While our graduation rates are improving and more children are attending the finest colleges and universities, we must continue to provide our children with the means for even greater success and options when they graduate our high school.

Historically, our board has carefully crafted its annual budgets to ensure compliance with the tax cap. It submitted a government efficiency plan that was approved and thereby ensures another year of no school tax increases.

This bond is yet another example of the board’s progressive and responsible decision making and stewardship. Thanks to advocacy efforts of the board and community, the district has received an additional $2.7M in state aid in recent years. As a result, many programs lost due to the financial crisis have been restored while critical improvements have been made. In recent years the board was able to fund the following in order to better meet the needs of the children in its care:

• International Baccalaureate Program
• School Psychologist at John F. Kennedy School
• Special Ed Teachers at King Street School & John F. Kennedy School
• Home Language Arts Teachers at Edison and Park Avenue
• 7th Grade Academy for Language and Class Size Reduction Teachers at PCMS
• Eliminate high school study halls & add English Language Arts supervisors
• Initiate the Intel Science research program, reinstate PSAT testing opportunities, and more clubs at PCHS
• Girls and Boys Swimming Teams at PCHS
• Reclamation of classroom space from BOCES at PCMS
• School Social Worker at Port Chester High School
• Elementary Science Program

Similar advocacy efforts also resulted in finding funding for the district’s after school programs and a high quality pre-Kindergarten program. What’s more, we are currently in the process of applying for the Smart Bond Act, which will provide the district with needed technology upgrades.

Do make a voting decision on December 22 based on the facts. Read the Q and A documents, review the floor plans and renderings, watch our films about the building plan, and make an informed decision. Remember that an investment in the schools is an investment in your community.