Posts Tagged ‘Gualtieri’

Trib-Review: Community group questions North Allegheny enrollment projections

Posted: December 6, 2012 in Press Coverage
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Community group questions North Allegheny enrollment projections

“If an elementary school building is closed, current enrollment would account for 90 percent of the total available seats in the remaining buildings,” said Tara Fisher, 36, of McCandless, a member of Save NA Schools. “It limits the district’s ability to keep class sizes below district guidelines.”

The report concludes that the district has a history of underestimating enrollment and that an enrollment increase could end up costing the district more money in the long run if a school is closed. The report also concludes that the district cannot guarantee the same level of education if a school is closed.

http://triblive.com/news/allegheny/3081573-74/district-board-enrollment#axzz2EBM1tEFZ

Trib: North Allegheny could close Peebles Elementary in cost-saving move

Posted: December 1, 2012 in Press Coverage
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Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

North Allegheny could close Peebles Elementary in cost-saving move

“Tara Fisher, 36, of McCandless, part of the “Save NA Schools” group, passed out a 32-page report contesting the conclusions made by the administration. Fisher contends the school closure would push up class sizes and bring the district dangerously close to capacity in the remaining buildings.

“It’s less than one percent of the district’s budget,” Fisher said. “I’m saying it’s not worth it. You’re disrupting the entire elementary education model.”
Read more: http://triblive.com/neighborhoods/yournorthhills/yournorthhillsmore/3040037-87/district-schools-board-closure-elementary-gualtieri-peebles-allegheny-close-closing#ixzz2Dp21Icfd

Save NA Schools: Community Report #1

Posted: November 28, 2012 in Community Report 1 & 2
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As presented to North Allegheny School District Board of School Directors on November 28, 2012.

[click here] Community Report 1

Based on current enrollment, closing a building would require the remaining buildings to operate at capacities that limit the district’s ability to manage class size and make the system dependent on spare classrooms.  Under the new model, spare classrooms would be used as regular classrooms and “other spares,” such as faculty lounges and open group instructional spaces, would become potential classrooms.  The rooms identified as “other spares” under the new model are not as conducive to learning as a regular classroom setting and displace programs integral to the elementary curriculum.  This compromises the district’s ability to deliver excellence in education and equity across all schools.

The decision to close a school is contingent on a decline in student enrollment and relies on projections made in the Phase 2 Demographics and Feasibility Study (Phase 2 report) and projections made by the administration.  The administration has a 13-year history of forecasting enrollment several hundred students below actual enrollment.  The enrollment projections in the Phase 2 report are below the forecasts provided by the administration, the data used for population projections does not tie to governmental records, and there is a mathematical error in the demographic study that has a significant impact on conclusions related to future growth.  Thus, both sources the district is relying on with respect to a decline in enrollment raise concern with respect to the accuracy of such projections.  If current enrollment goes up, the district cannot reasonably accommodate additional students and faces spending more money than it saved from closing a building.

This report summarizes our concerns, observations, and evaluations in regards to the district’s ability to reasonably accommodate all elementary students in the remaining buildings without compromising the district’s successful elementary education model and curriculum.

  1. Introduction
  2. Building utilization under a new elementary education model
  3. Reliance on declining enrollment projections
  4. Additional Concerns
  5. Conclusion

Superintendent’s Coffee on Thursday, September 20

Posted: September 19, 2012 in Take Action
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You are invited to attend the Superintendent’s Coffee.

Attendance is not limited to NA parents– but is open to the entire community.

• Meet District Administrators.
• Hear an overview of key information for parents.
• Q & A will close the session.

Bradford Woods Elementary School • 41 Forest Road • Bradford Woods, PA 15015 • 724-935-5081

Trib, Post Gazette: Parents Voice Concerns

Posted: September 13, 2012 in Press Coverage
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Parents of North Allegheny students to voice concerns over a recommendation to close Peebles Elementary

North Allegheny hears case to keep Peebles Elementary open

Please attend Pebbles Elementary PTA Meeting~!

Posted: September 9, 2012 in Take Action
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Dr. Ray Gualtieri, NA Superintendent, and Brian Miller, NA Asst. Superintendent, will be speaking at the Peebles Elementary PTA meeting.

We cannot urge you enough to attend this meeting.

It is important that we demonstrate by our sheer numbers that we stand together as a community and that the Superintendent and the School Board are put on notice that the recommendation to close Peebles Elementary directly affects our children and our neighborhoods. The plan to close Peebles is in no way “a done deal”– and we can make a difference by our presence.

(Parking will be tight that morning. You may want to plan to park at Memorial Park Church, and walk over to the school.)

 

Open Letter from a Hosack parent

Posted: September 7, 2012 in Letters
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Some of you may have heard that during the last school board meeting, the night before the 2012-2013 school year began, a recommendation was made to close Peebles Elementary School.  The immediate reaction was that it was a Peebles’ problem.  But really, it is a Hosack problem- and to a very large extent, a district-wide problem, too.

Arleen Wheat, assistant superintendent for special education and pupil services, said “We’ve done a lot of those transitions, I feel very self-assured that the students can be assimilated into Hosack. It’s a great school.”

But, as a Hosack parent, that really isn’t the issue.

Hosack currently has an enrollment of 335 students and– according to the Phase Two feasibility study cited by North Allegheny school district– a capacity of 550 students.  The Superintendent stated at the Superintendent’s coffee last week that elementary class size **is ** being increased to a target of 30 students per class– and possibly 33 and 34 in some cases.  With the closing of Peebles Elementary, the plan is to load Hosack to “capacity”.  To increase capacity you need more students in each classroom– and to get more classrooms to accommodate the increased number of students you will need to turn the art room,  the music room,  the orchestra room, into classrooms….

But again, this doesn’t just affect Hosack and Peebles students– school size at Ingomar, McKnight, Franklin and Bradford Woods, and Marshall will grow as well.

At no point in the meeting was it addressed how closing an elementary school will save money.  Last year, Ray Gualtieri, NA Superintendent, stated numerous times that closing a school would only save about $220K per year.  The reality is that by increasing capacity at the other schools,  capital improvements will need to be made at those other schools.  Capital improvements = $$….. which, considering that NA is forecasting an $8M budget shortfall this year doesn’t appear to make very much sense.

Some have suggested that without the closure of one of North Allegheny’s elementary schools a tax increase will be necessary to find the necessary funds.  We do not believe that a choice between appropriate class sizes in community schools and increased taxes is necessary or accurate.  These two options should be last resorts and more appropriate cuts and innovative cost saving measures can be found before these extreme measures.

This is where our presence (and voices) are needed.

Both Dr. Gualtieri and Brian Miller, NA Asst. Superintendent,  will be speaking at Peebles Elementary on Monday, September 10 at 9:00am.  I cannot urge you enough to attend this meeting. Please invite your neighbors.  Please share this email with others.  It is important that we demonstrate that we stand together as a community and that the Superintendent and the School Board are put on notice that we are paying attention.  That, as parents of Hosack students, this recommendation to close Peebles Elementary directly effects our children and our neighborhoods.  The plan to close Peebles is in no way “a done deal”– and we can make a difference.  (Parking may be tight that morning.  It was suggested by a Peebles parent to carpool, park at Memorial Park Church, and walk over to the school.)

If you are not able to attend this meeting please plan to attend the School board meeting at the Central Admin Office on

September 12   (Work Session)

September 19 (Regular Meeting)

And, you are invited to attend the President’s Coffee on Thursday, September 20 at 9:15a which will be held at Bradford Woods Elementary school.

If you are on Facebook I urge you to join the parent-led group Save Peebles Elementary https://www.facebook.com/groups/save.peebles/

You may also sign an on-line petition that can be found at http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/save-peebles/

I feel so passionately about Hosack– thank you for reading–

Sincerely,

Laurel Schreiber, Hosack Parent

NA Residents for Neighborhood Schools

Posted: September 7, 2012 in Letters, Take Action
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Welcome to SaveNAschools.  

This blog was started to be a resource for the community of North Allegheny School District –a community made up of parents, neighbors…taxpayers.

As many of you are aware, North Allegheny School District is now seriously considering a new course of action aimed at lowering costs.  This new plan would be executed prior to presenting a referendum to tax payers that voluntarily raise taxes to support North Allegheny School District. While being fiscally responsible is an admirable, and certainly the correct thing to do, the  recommendation to close Peebles Elementary School comes at a time when the average elementary class size in the district is increasing past Pennsylvania Department of Education Guidelines.

We hope to provide concerned residents with information regarding the recent recommendation to the school board, offer opportunities to become involved in the effort to save our NA neighborhood schools, and keep residents aware of the latest announcements from the school board as their plan moves forward.

The Story:

On August 22, 2012, Jon Thomas  of  Thomas & Williamson ( a construction program management company) recommended to the North Allegheny school board to close Peebles Elementary School.  Citing excess capacity across the district, increasing costs, decreasing state funding and a projected budget shortfall for the 2012-2013 school year,  the proposal was made to close Peebles at the end of this school year.

At the school board meeting, there was no discussion about how closing a well attended, structurally sound school would save the district significant funds- especially since any savings would likely be off set by the cost of renovations to increase capacity at the other district schools.  In fact, Mr. Thomas acknowledged that it was difficult to  recommend closing Peebles since it was last renovated in 1999.

Concerned parents of Peebles Elementary students, in cooperation with parents from Hosack Elementary school, want to hold the school board accountable.

Faced with elementary school class sizes that are already above the Pennsylvania Department of Education guidelines in many elementary classrooms across the district:

  • We want the school board to directly address how closing a neighborhood school will help the district save substantial funds- when, Mr. Ray Gualtieri, NA Superintendent, by his own account, admitted that closing an elementary school would only save $220K a year.
  • We want to understand why other cost savings opportunities have not been explored.
  • We want the school board to demonstrate how they plan to effectively fill our schools past the point of realistic capacity.
  • We want to know how the school board plans to promote continued equity across the district.
  • We want an explanation as to how we can expect our property values to remain strong if we are no longer competitive with neighboring school districts that offer reasonable class sizes and neighborhood schools.
  • We want to know why the school board hired a firm with a potential financial interest in facility rehabilitation and construction to make recommendati0ns regarding construction and consolidation of schools across the district.
  • We want to understand why- after numerous statements from Mr. Gualtieri throughout the Fall of 2011 and Spring of 2012, that North Allegheny would not move to close any elementary schools prior to a referendum, why this recommendation was announced without notice on August 22, 2012.
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