Click here to view the agenda for this meeting
Click here to view the PCTV meeting recording
Berkshire Eagle and iBerkshires were both present at this meeting. PCTV recorded the whole tour and I would highly recommend watching their recording.
Tour of Conte
Here are my notes from the tour of Conte Community School:
- Because of the open classroom nature teachers have to be deliberate in how they lay out their classrooms.
- Walls have been added on in certain areas to add more small group instructional spaces, but they are not soundproof.
- Main office is on the 2nd floor of the building, former community coordinators office was on the first floor.
- No screen on the windows, creates a bee issue.
- Arts and science areas are also open classroom.
- Open classroom design also presents security concerns.
- The open classroom design can create various distractions for students.
Click here to view the images I took during the tour
Tour of Crosby
Here are my notes from the tour of Crosby Elementary School:
- Crosby is a former junior high school and is designed as such.
- Windows are cracked and some are covered in duct tape. The windows can’t be replaced due to asbestos.
- The windows have new blinds to replace the old sharp metal blinds that had a tendency to fall during class.
- The classroom sizes are 10% under the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) recommended lowest classroom size for an elementary school.
- The classrooms have no water or sinks.
- The bathrooms are junior high school bathrooms and are set up as such.
- Gym is larger than MSBA guidelines.
- There are very few small group instructional spaces.
- Auditorium can’t be a part of a new building process funded by MSBA, if we want an elementary school with an auditorium it would be at our expense.
Click here to view the images I took during the tour
Whole Group Presentation
Click here to view the whole group presentation presented to us after the tour
After the tours, we were given a presentation on the process for submitting a Statement of Interest (SOI) to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA).
District Restructuring Process and Master Plan
- Though discussion of Universal Pre-K is a part of the school restructuring study, it is a separate discussion and will require a vote of the School Committee.
- The proposed idea coming out from the restructuring study is to have all Pittsfield students in grade 5 and 6 attend one school together, and then all Pittsfield students in grades 7 and 8 attend another school together. This would allow more opportunities for these students as they would be under one roof for the whole city.
- Proposed idea is to eventually have 3 attendance zones for elementary schools around the city, and using partner schools to put this plan into place earlier.
- The master plan for the district does not replace a feasibility study for a new school building, and nothing is set in stone just because it is in the plan.
This is the district’s master plan spanning out to 2046. Click here to view a larger version.
Massachusetts School Building Authority
- Statements of Interests for the core program (which this project will fall under) are due by Friday April 12th.
- The School Committee and City Council must vote to authorize the Superintendent to submit a SOI.
- The purpose of submitting an SOI is that we recognize we have a problem with our school facilities.
- The discussion around Conte and Crosby does not stop after the submission of the SOI, it continues.
- It is a five year program for building a new school through MSBA, and MSBA funds the 8th year of projected enrollment for the new school.
Facility Size Guidelines
MSBA has certain guidelines for the sizes of school facilities. MSBA also says that special education facilities must be equal in size to those of general education facilities and must not be separate from those facilities.
This is how Pittsfield currently meets those size guidelines (larger image):
New Facility on the Crosby Site
- Per DRA, the architect consultants for the restructuring study, Crosby is in worse condition than PHS
- We have the potential to get up to 80% reimbursement for the project from MSBA
- Projected rate will be given after SOI acceptance
- Renovate or replace
- Conte has building issues that make it hard for it to be renovated
- MSBA wouldn’t fund the larger gym at Crosby as well as the auditorium
- Renovation would lower the reimbursement rate and the cost to renovate would almost be the same as to build a new school
- Earlier opening is 2028 for a new elementary school
- Latest opening is 2029
- For every 1 year wait to start a new school construction project, cost is estimated to go up by 7%
- Can withdrawal the SOI up until it is accepted by MSBA without penalty
- Usually in December
- Next step after submission of SOI and acceptance: commitment to a feasibility study
- Usually around $1.5M and the cost is shared by the state
Next Steps on the Statement of Interest (SOI)
What Submitting an SOI Means
The submission of a Statement of Interest (SOI) to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) is only saying to the state that we are interested in doing something with Conte and Crosby, not that we have a specific plan we want to implement. Though the district’s restructuring study has been looked at combining Conte and Crosby into one new school on the Crosby site, it is not set into stone.
If the SOI is accepted by the MSBA, then we conduct a feasibility study that looks more in-depth at various different options for what to do with Conte and Crosby. Do we renovate instead of replace, and what would that look like? What would combining both schools look like? What if we kept them separate?
The public conversation doesn’t stop with the submission of the SOI, and there will be more opportunities to come for public input, especially when the focus moves from the whole district to Conte and Crosby specifically.
School Closures and Redistricting
The submission of a SOI for Crosby and Conte does not mean that we are closing Conte or Crosby and no decision has been made on the matter. The closing of a school building and redistricting are totally separate processes with opportunities for public input.
For closing a school building, per School Committee policy FAC-30 the School Committee must vote to close a school facility and return it back to the City of Pittsfield. This is after a study on the closing of the building is presented to the School Committee by the Superintendent.
For redistricting, which would follow a decision to close a school building, per School Committee policy SC-64 the Superintendent or their designee “shall conduct an open hearing to which he shall invite the parents of the pupils to be transferred and parent and teacher groups of the schools involved in the redistricting” and then the School Committee must conduct their own public hearing before taking a vote on the redistricting proposal.
Proposed Timeline for Votes to Be Taken
March 12th, 2024 – School Building Needs Commission votes to submit the SOI (this would occur at a special meeting)
March 13th, 2024 – School Committee votes to submit the SOI (our next regular meeting)
March 26th, 2024 – City Council votes to submit the SOI
These votes must be conducted before the April 12th deadline for submitting a Statement of Interest.
If you have any questions, concerns, or feedback feel free to reach out to me at my contact information below!
Next School Committee Meetings
Our next regular meeting that is scheduled is Wednesday, March 13th at 6pm at City Hall in City Council Chambers. This will be the meeting where the district’s proposed budget for FY25 will be presented.
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