Schools

Population Growth Catalyst for Major Changes in Danbury Schools.

While not all changes are for the better, there is exciting news ahead.

Shelter Rock Elementary School Principal Julia Horne was accompanied by several parents who attended the 20/20 Danbury Board of Education Task Force Meeting on Tuesday night. They had come to take a stand against the loss of Shelter Rock's  spacious and well appointed art room in the fall. The arts program, which has made an impact in teaching children of fewer resources, will be reduced to a roving Art on a Cart that will move from classroom to classroom, and the materials and teacher's desk will be held in a small shelved closet that appears from the photographs to currently be a maintenance storage room.

 Horne asked for the art classroom to be saved and Board of Education Member Kathy Molinaro asked, “Where, Julia, where do we cut back? Tell us, where do we cut back?” A photograph of the art room that will be turned into a kindergarten in the fall is shown in the photo gallery. 

 Parent Jenny Seese was concerned at the amount of families moving into the Shelter Rock district. She cited the Timber Oaks condos, which have three and four bedroom homes, to be one of the biggest problems. According to Seese, there will be 369 units there which could easily result in that many more children attending the already overburdened school.

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 The evening's agenda was to provide an update of the Space Utilization and Enrollment Projection Report. Bill Glass, ED.d. and Deputy Superintendent of Schools, provided a timeline for the reorganization of schools. Glass repeatedly commented on how the population growth has exceeded all expectations and studies. He said, “We have already gone through the ceiling of the last projection of only a year ago.”

 The school population in 2008 was approximately 10,000 students. In 2010, the population had grown to 10,381. Classroom sizes and even some school buildings have reached their maximum occupancy.

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 Danbury's school population is the only school district in the region that is growing, and the city's poverty level is also growing by astronomical numbers. Previous rates held fairly steadily for years at 30-33% but has now hit 46%. Glass said, “We need more materials for these kids. Art is a necessary experiential foundation for their education.”

 Horne quietly agreed. Glass commended Horne on her work as a principal.

Glass noted that the vocabulary for children of poverty can be as much as 60% less than students from affluent homes.

 In order to accommodate the swelling population, many schools will have to undergo changes. While some of those changes are bound to cause parental concern, other changes can be viewed as exciting. The proposed school changes are as follows:

 Mill Ridge Primary will become a K-5

King Street Primary will become K-5

King Street Intermediate will become K-5

Mill Ridge Primary Remains the same

Mill Ridge Intermediate becomes the home for the Middle School STEM program

Permanent classrooms, called pods, would be built outside of schools that had the space for them.

 There will be some intra districting magnet schools for Shelter Rock and King Street. Intra districting means that students from one district can apply to attend a magnet school taking place within another public school outside of their own district.

There may be some redistricting of schools, which will be influenced by the legal need to remain racially balanced, and students from mid-city may be brought out to other districts.

 The STEM Program is the most exciting change on the boards. Right now, STEM, which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, is currently an intra district magnet school taking place at Roger's Park. In place for the last three years, there are currently 175 students from both Roger's Park and Broadview. The program is growing quickly and according to STEM teachers Nancy Barlow and Beth Manning, “There are already more students applying for spots than are available.”

 Entry is through lottery.

 The courses in the current STEM program are taught in the block schedule, with 90 minutes per class. Barlow said, “There is different software, experiments, research and problem solving, and team work for everything.”

 Manning said, “We do a lot of inquiry based learning, which means the students have to find a lot of their material.”

 “We are organized to be interdisciplinary, to run on themes in the science program, but those themes run into all other subjects,” said Manning. “Right now we are working on foundations, and there are new themes every trimester.”

 “The themes are carried through in US Hisory, language and math,” said Barlow.

 At the meeting, Glass provided a power point that outlined a timetable for the different aspects of all of the upcoming changes, however, Mayor Mark Boughton disagreed with the timelines and said nothing could move forward without a referendum, which would have to take place in April. “It's not fair to saddle this board with this decision. We have to get people out to vote. What is this going to mean to taxes? We can work those numbers down pretty close.”

 “We have to show the public why this is a cost efficient to do this,” he said.

 The mayor called for the submission plan to be completed by December 2011, and City Council would take January and February for deliberation.

 Superintendent Sal Pascarella, ED.d., made it clear that, “If this doesn't happen by June 2012, then we will have to wait until the following June.”

 Pascarella asked the mayor, “Is it your feeling that Mill Ridge will go forward?”

 Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton answered, “We are good to go with Head Start. We have a building concept, it will be complete and under budget.”

 While there is currently no timeline in place for the changes, it is hoped that all changes will be in effect by 2013.

 The most exciting changes will be in the way the high school deals with it's overcrowding issues.

 Glass revealed an extensive program for the high school which includes the implementation of several new magnet-type programs that will all take place outside of Danbury High School. These programs will be half day at Danbury High School and the second half will be Small Learning Academies that will take place in professional environments that will reflect the course of study. Proposed magnet school are:

 The International Baccalaureate and STEM Program: Will aim to develop internationally minded people who, recognizing their common humanity and shared guardianship of the planet, help to create a better and more peaceful world. The school’s mission is to help students become critical thinkers and to develop positive attitudes for lifelong learning through a solid curriculum that emphasizes the International Studies inquiry-based learning philosophy, literacy, foreign languages (Spanish and French), and technology. College preparatory in nature, the school engages the students in the co-construction of curriculum through hands-on and minds-on activities and assessments that continually ask the students not only to imagine, investigate, and invent but also to critically think, write, and speak.

 The DPS Visual and Performing Arts Small Learning Academy: Students at the DPS Visual and Performing Arts Small Learning Academy and in conjunction with the Palace Theatre in Danbury, study dance, music, theatre and visual arts at an advanced level with certified teachers who are also professional artists.

 The DPS Business and Finance Small Learning Academy Entrepreneurial and Finance Program: The DPS Business and Finance Small Learning Academy integrates business and financial concepts and skills into all areas of its college preparatory education. Through an interdisciplinary approach, in conjunction with the Danbury Fair Mall and Union Savings Bank, The Entrepreneurial and Finance Program prepares students for further study in a wide range of business enterprises so students can compete in a 21st century global economy. The Entrepreneurial and Finance Program connects students with the world of financial and retail services, offering a curriculum that covers sales and marketing, advertising, banking and credit, financial planning, international finance, securities, insurance, accounting, and economics.


The DPS Health and Bioscience Small Learning Academy Medical Prep Program: The Health and Bioscience Small Learning Academy prepares students to pursue further education toward a career in the medical sciences through rigorous specialized curriculum and community-based partnerships through collaborations with Danbury Hospital and Western Connecticut State University. The program is designed for college-preparatory students who are interested in pursuing a medical or health science career after high school. 


The DPS Public Safety Small Learning Academy Public Safety Cadet Program: Will provide students and families an excellent alternative learning opportunity in conjunction with the Danbury Airport, the Danbury Police Department, the Office of Homeland Security and the Danbury Fire Department. In other schools, young people might gain status based on their popularity, athletic ability, or the clique they hang out with. At Public Safety Small Learning Academy, rank is earned based on true merit and achievement.

The DPS Ecology Studies Small Learning Academy Environmental Studies Green Program: will encompasses three major themes: Weather and Space, Stream and Lake Life Study, and Urban Gardening and Ecology. Students have many opportunities to “learn in the field” due to the availability of Candlewood Lake, the Still River, the Tarrywile nature park and the Western Connecticut State University Nature Preserve. Students study each area every year, with the material increasing in complexity as they advance.

Glass described the massive project by saying, “We are flying the plane while building it.”

There are many steps to take before this vision becomes a reality, however, as the meeting ended, Glass said, “This is going to become a reality. It has to.”

With Danbury Schools bursting at the seams with students, the plan to will allow all space to be utilized and, as Glass said, “Will be a very dynamic experience.”


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