New construction plans placed on hold - for now
Enrollment is lower than expected in Marlboro K-8 district
BY TALI ISRAELI
Staff Writer

Plans for new construction in the Marlboro K-8 district are on the back burner until enrollment projections can be reviewed.

Following the news of a flat enrollment in the 2006-07 school year, district officials have planned to take a second look at the projections for the next five years. The demographer is expected to meet with the Board of Education in November.

According to assistant Superintendent Marc Gaswirth, the enrollment for the 2006-07 school year is 6,133 pupils, 86 fewer students than the district projected for this year.

Although board President Terry Spilken said he is pleased that the rate of growth in the district has finally slowed down, he noted that the projections for the next five years show an increase of about 400 students.

In the 2007-08 school year, officials are projecting a total of 6,325 students to be enrolled in the district. That number is expected to rise to 6,544 students by the 2009-10 school year, before declining to 6,512 pupils in the 2010-11 school year.

Those numbers were used by Superintendent of Schools David Abbott in his recommendation to the board this summer that a new elementary school is needed in the district. Abbott's recommendations included an elementary school of about 97,000 square feet, which would be able to house grades K-6 and have a capacity of about 750 pupils. An eight-classroom addition to the Marlboro Early Learning Center (MELC) was also discussed by the superintendent.

Board discussions regarding a new school highlighted a rift between the members of the school board, some of whom wanted to expedite the application process in order to meet the September deadline for a March referendum. Other members wished to gauge public opinion on the matter so money would not be wasted on a defeated referendum.

However, in light of the unexpected enrollment numbers for the 2006-07 school year, the school board and the administration have decided to put the plans for a referendum on hold until November.

This year's numbers have come in lower than projected and do not match last year's enrollment increase. The enrollment in the 2005-06 school year was 6,143 students, an increase of 112 pupils from the 2004-05 school year. This year, the district experienced a drop of 10 students compared to last year.

Despite that school officials still have concerns over a lack of classroom space in the district.

"We're utilizing every room. We're full to the seams as it is now," Spilken said.

Abbott agreed with the board president and said, "I have no more full-size classrooms left."

Abbott said the need for a new school can be delayed by putting more programs on carts, increasing class sizes, and using trailers as classrooms. However, he said that in order to get the trailers, he has to present the state with a plan to get rid of them within five years. The superintendent added that increasing class sizes and putting programs on carts could compromise the quality of education in the district.

In regard to the average class size this year, Spilken said the numbers are exactly what the board has always hoped for.

The average class size for kindergarten is 19.5 students, in first grade that number is 21.8 students, in second grade the average is 23.1 pupils, the class size in third grade is 23.9 students, in fourth grade that number is 25 students, and in fifth grade the average class size is 25.1 students.

"The class sizes are wonderful. They're right where I want them and the board wants them," Abbott said. "I am thrilled by that level. The sizes are at a moderate level and I am very pleased with that."

According to Gaswirth, the reason for the moderate level of class size in first grade is that one first-grade position was moved from Asher Holmes Elementary School to Marlboro Elementary School. Gaswirth said the numbers for Marlboro Elementary were high in first grade and at Asher Holmes they were low.

As for the kindergarten class sizes, Gaswirth said the number of students enrolled at MELC is less than was anticipated by the district.

Abbott agreed and said the number of sections at MELC was reduced from 20 to 18, based on a drop in enrollment the district experienced at kindergarten orientation in the spring.

However, Abbott noted that a decrease in enrollment at MELC does not mean the building has more space for additional students in the upcoming years. Due to special education student enrollment increasing every year, MELC is in need of additional classrooms, he said.