Sally E. Bahner Photo
The Board of Education (BOE) and the design team of DTC/Perkins Eastman heard comments from the board and the public on Wednesday at its first meeting regarding the specific educational specifications for what is likely to be a renovated Walsh Intermediate School.
It’s what could be described as a “wish list,” “dream list,” or, more accurately, a student needs list for the school.
Sally E. Bahner Photo
Joseph Costa, Perkins Eastman principal, presented a draft of the educational specifications, which, when finalized, are presented to the state as a basis for funding. They are not tied to a dollar amount, nor to the final design of the building.
The four plans for updating the building itself were recapped at a special BOE meeting Oct. 28 and both the board and the public offered comments. Here’s a link to the options presented in September.
The BOE will meet again tomorrow, Nov. 17, at 7 p.m. and a public hearing will take place Dec. 2. Schools Superintendent Hamlet Hernandez explained that the goal by the December board meeting is to have recommendations for building options and educational specifications.
The project will then be reviewed by the town’s Building Commission whose appointments are made by the Board of Selectmen. Two BOE members are expected to be appointed to the commission for the Walsh application, the school board indicated. Hyunjuin Liam, the student BOE representative, expressed interest in being part of it; Hernandez agreed that “a student voice was important,” albeit in a non-voting capacity.
Sally E. Bahner Photo
At the start of the meeting, Hernandez and BOE chair Michael Krause presented awards to outgoing board members Susan Wharfe, secretary, who did not seek re-election; vice-chair Mario Sabatini; and Ellen Michaels acknowledging their service. Sabatini and Michaels, both Democrats, lost their seats in the recent municipal election.
What Makes a School?
Costa emphasized that the document presented was a “work in progress… blueprint… roadmap…” for the school. “You have to make it happen,” he said. “How the educational specifications are formed is what the school is about.”
The entire plan is based on accommodating 800 to 1,000 students, allowing for fluctuation in enrollment. Hernandez said that an enrollment study has been commissioned and that the numbers are based on current information.
Indeed, the enrollment at Walsh has been declining, from 989 as of Oct. 1, 2012, according to the state-prepared Branford Strategic School Profile (an 8.6 percent decrease over five years) to 916 as of Oct. 1, 2014, according to the State of the School, prepared by the town, issued in May 2015. The 2012 profile was prepared by the state, the 2015 by the town.
The actual audience for the educational specification report is the state department of education, which reimburses the town based on the number of students.
“It’s what makes a great school for Branford,” said Mark McCarthy, Perkins Eastman principal.
With Permission
DTC/Perkins Eastman reiterated some of their points from previous meetings such as the needs for security, accessibility, proper acoustics, natural light, technology, and a healthy environment. They presented via slides an organization design of spaces and how they go together, including extra space for Board of Education offices and a health clinic. Under this plan the BOE will be moved from its current headquarters in the center of town to Walsh.
Each classroom measures 800 square feet with a capacity of 20 to 25 students.
Sally E. Bahner Photo
The team concept, already in place, was maintained with sections for 5th and 6th graders and 7th and 8th graders, accommodating 100 to 125 students. The classrooms will include science labs, world language instruction, common space, and, unlike the current school, lots of natural light.
Each grade level (with two teams per grade totaling 200 to 250 students) will include special education, life skills, and performing arts sections.
Keeping in mind the different levels of educational needs and maturity, the 5th and 6th graders will not move around as much as the 7th and 8th graders.
Staff and support space is grouped together with a separate grouping for administration and guidance offices.
Keeping in mind the need for quality performing arts space, there’s a separate auditorium (plus practice rooms) and cafeteria; the present school has a “cafetorium,” which combined both. Within that section are visual and performing arts, specialized instruction, media resource center, and gym and pool.
In terms of square footage, the specs call for 178,269 square feet, which included the educational needs, pool and lockers, and 6,500 square feet toward office space. The existing school totals approximately 191,000 square feet. That leaves 13,000 square feet of space that would be repurposed or demolished, depending on the option chosen.
Student Needs List
Based on the educational specifications from the design team they reviewed, board members had many suggestions for elements they want to see in the new school within both education and athletic areas of the educational specifications. DTC/Perkins Eastman reps encouraged their feedback, noting that the plans encouraged adaptability.
Within educational needs:
• Board member Kate Marsland said designers should be encouraged to be innovative and perhaps base classroom organization on what the students know rather than the traditional “age to grade concept, keeping in mind that the 5th graders are not a traditional part of the middle school structure.”
• Marsland also said decisions regarding the new school should not be based on any current fads
• Board member Judy Hotz said the guidance/social workers should be central to the organization, and that the nurses’ station should be large enough to accommodate a wheel chair.
• Board member John Prins said security concerns need to be addressed: “How do you deal with a situation in which students may be locked down for two hours?”
• Prins also emphasized the need for performance space that’s “acoustically tuned,” plus the need for sufficient practice rooms in light of the quality of the programs found in the high school.
• Marsland suggested that an adaptable “swing space” be incorporated to accommodate a large ensemble, woodworking, or community needs, along with quiet spaces for students.
• RTM member Peter Black of Short Beach said space for shop instruction amid the technological needs should be considered. “Driving a nail is an important life skill.”
Within athletic needs:
• Illumination of the athletic fields was suggested by Krause as a means of extending play time. He also suggested a reconfiguring of the fields to accommodate town use.
• Marsland said a “bubble” over the tennis courts so they can be used year round would be “the chance to do something good for the town.”
• A separate entrance for the gym and pool so that the rest of the school can be locked during off hours was suggested by Mario Sabatini.
• Lim, the student rep, suggested that there be two large gyms as opposed to the current large and smaller one; accommodating the wrestling team in the current smaller gym was difficult. He also suggested improvement of the running track, which is now just gravel.
All agreed that now is the time to “dream big.” All of the suggestions will be collected and taken into consideration and assigned dollar amounts toward the final plan.
Parent Celia Toche encouraged the board to take “a little more time to be inspirational… don’t short change the process.” To the designers, she said, “It’s your job to make it real.”
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