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BELMONT -- The Union Local Comprehensive Educational Facilities Planning Committee met for the first time Monday as the school district looks to begin planning a decade's worth of curricular and facility improvements.
Superintendent Ben Porter said the process of assessing the facilities in the district began in January, focusing on what was needed to get the buildings "up to code" and better suited to deliver a more modern education. Porter told attendees that would mean moving away from classrooms where a teacher dictates lessons to students and toward a more collaborative experience in which "21st century skills" can be developed.
Porter said "rigorous academic content" would remain the foundation, but that there will be new emphasis on developing the communication, social and problem-solving skills required for "deep learning."
Educational planner and consultant David Sneed opened with some sobering statistics outlining the rapidly changing global economy and the importance of preparing students to live and compete in that world.
Sneed said that while the facilities evaluation that was begun in January and completed over the summer yielded a projected cost of $46 million to perform the needed improvements, it would be a mistake to think that the district has a $46 million problem. Instead, he said the evaluation should be the data used to drive decisions and that it will be up to the administration, the committee and the subcommittees to prioritize and plan the needed improvements over the course of the next decade.
"The C.E.F.P. is going to have two components -- the building component and space assessment. The other side of that is going to be an educational and financing plan, which is what you are going to help us create," he said.
Sneed also emphasized the importance of establishing the committees and the proper lines of communication between the various subcommittees and the administrative departments and that the educational plan would lead and inform the facilities plan as work begins.
Sneed added that the C.E.F.P. Committee would have an executive committee made up of the superintendent and his staff, which will help set the agendas for all of the committee and subcommittee meetings. He also said there would be a curriculum committee that would determine what changes need to be made to help students accomplish what they need with a renewed focus on science, technology, engineering, arts and math.
John Jefferis of PCS & Manage explained that during the evaluation, representatives of his firm had walked the facilities with staff members and received staff input. He said the costs listed would bring all facilities up to current code and standards, projecting a midpoint of construction of 2022 for the project. He noted that architectural fees and permit costs were included.
Jefferis said Porter had asked PCS to look into improving student safety, and evaluators found deficiencies with the secured entrances that lack a true "man trap," adding that once visitors are buzzed into the building they can move about freely.
Jefferis and Sneed mentioned several other areas of particular need, including HVAC and power availability in the middle school, exterior lighting at the rear of the school buildings, the parking lot at the elementary school, and the auditorium. Jefferis also said that part of the assessment addressed the need for a small addition for a pre-k facility
When asked about how the district would pay for the improvements Porter responded, "I know $45 million seems like a big price tag, but when these committees are able to meet and prioritize I don't see our costs being that high. We would like to use as much revenue as we get from oil and gas and exhaust those resources. How far that goes remains to be seen, because that number for us has not been consistent the last few years."
He later said all possible funding sources will be considered.