The School Vision Thing at Snow

About 25 residents/parents, arrived at Snow School to participate in the school visioning survey being conducted by JCJ Architects. Among the residents was Middletown Mayor Sebastian Giuliano and Board of Ed member Sheila Daniels (who received praise from some in attendance for her ability to sidestep politics and speak with integrity on the Board).

As with the other meetings parents were asked to answer questions grouped under a number of topics to attempt to assess our opinions on the current state of the school and the district, and the ideal state of schools and the district.

There was unanimity on the size of schools and classrooms. Everyone who spoke noted that small class sizes and small schools are best for students, teachers and administrators. However, when it came to assessing realities, more than one speaker made it clear that given the current economic climate, and state of the city budget, small schools with small classes was a bit of a pipe dream.

There was also general agreement that community or neighborhood schools were preferred over larger, more centralized schools, especially at the elementary level, for a number of reasons including parent involvement, community-building and time on school buses. The negative of neighborhood schools was expressed by me as a balkanization of race and poverty.

Here' s where the meeting got heated. The moderater suggested that forced integration through busing was a bad idea imposed by the government to solve a problem that didn't necessarily need to be solved. He said, "It's adults using kids to solve an adult problem."

This fueled a long, and sometimes vitriolic, discussion of integration in Middletown, the need for integration, whether poverty or race was at the root of the problem, and the distinct problems with busing any school child long distances.

In a more free-form discussion of pluses and minuses of the current district it was noted that the schools are strong in arts and sports, that most parents and students liked their elementary schools, that there are a number of very good principals and teachers, that after-school programs were excellent.

Criticism was aimed at the politization of the Board of Education, and at state laws which make Connecticut Boards of Education and school superintendents able to avoid fiscal oversight by the towns in which they operate. Understandably, Giuliano was particularly incensed at the inability to control spending in the schools.

Because of the long discussions on educational topics, the meeting ended later than planned (but frustratingly, also began twenty minutes later than the 6 PM start time.)