Forum raises questions, but answers few

By Bridgette L. Rallo
The question for Norfolk residents with school-age children, as well as for members of the town Board of Education (BOE) is, to merge or not to merge. The subject has been aired before, once in the late 1980s, once in 1993 and again in 2006. But with education costs rising and fewer children entering the system from small towns, the issue of consolidating school districts to save money and increase efficiency, is once more on the table.
A community forum held last month by members of the BOE at Botelle, began the process of providing parents and taxpayers with current information and of listening to public input. Two prospects for mergers exist and both would require a majority ‘yes’ vote from residents in the impacted towns in order to proceed. The first option is a partnership between Botelle and Colebrook Consolidated School and the second is the integration of students attending grades K-12 from Norfolk, Colebrook, New Hartford and Barkhamsted into the Regional 7 School District.
BOE Chairman EJay Lockwood moderated the forum, sharing the dais with board members and with Botelle Superintendent, George Counter. Audience participants were provided with a copy of the minutes from the 2006 forum on a proposed school partnership between Norfolk and Colebrook, which detailed many of the same issues facing both towns today. These issues included the cost of a partnership, its impact on class size, how much control each district would have over school policies, staff and curriculum, how transportation would be handled and how long such a partnership would last. As it now stands, the idea of a partnership with Colebrook is taking a back seat to the larger plan, until Regional 7 decides whether or not to conduct a feasibility study on the benefits and risks of the K-12 model.

Town residents expressed their concerns about two elementary school proposals at a forum held at Botelle Elementary School last month.

Lockwood began with a short introduction and then opened the meeting for questions from the public. Asked if consolidation with Regional 7 or a partnership with Colebrook would mean the closure of Botelle, Lockwood stated that while he couldn’t definitively rule it out in Regional 7’s case, he didn’t believe that it would happen. “I would think that Botelle would be pretty low on the list of schools to be closed. My best guess is that one school closes and three stay open,” he said. The option of closing Botelle in the event of a Norfolk-Colebrook partnership is unlikely because of the condition of the Colebrook school building.
According to BOE member Sally Carr, the question of a regional solution is a question of who is in control. “What is not clear,” said Carr, “is the power a regional board would have to close one school.” She said that such a move would mean the loss of local control, which is an outcome that Norfolk residents have historically opposed. But Lockwood stated his belief that elementary school education “probably remains local,” regardless of which scenario is finally adopted.
Resident and parent Amy Nelson summed up many parents’ feelings on the possibility of closure by asking, “Would you be willing to have your town be without its elementary school?” Participant Roland Denny wondered if there was a way to preclude closing Botelle, before any agreement came to a vote. “If you wanted to say nobody would be able to close Botelle down, could you build this into the model?” Denny asked.
Board of Finance Chairman Michael Sconyers, who attended the forum along with First Selectman Sue Dyer and Selectman Jim Stotler, gave voice to a common concern among parents, namely that parental preferences would have less significance at the regional level. “A lot of the feeling is that we’ll lose local input,” Sconyers said.
Lockwood responded to the issue about local control and input by asserting that consolidation plans are still in the early stages and that no proposals are under consideration at this time. “There is no harm in looking into it,” Lockwood said. “I can’t think of a situation where more information is bad.”
If Regional 7 officials decide to conduct a K-12 study, the time frame for completion would be approximately two to three years. The next step would be to go to a referendum. A ‘no’ vote by any of the four towns would mean defeat of the initiative for all of them. Only then would Norfolk and Colebrook consider an alternative partnership.
Both the Colebrook partnership model and the Regional 7 model have consequences, which were addressed briefly. Bussing of smaller children concerned some in the audience and the question of enriched curriculums interested others. Under the Colebrook model some children would have to be bussed from the Barkhamsted town line to Botelle, possibly encroaching on the state limit of 20 miles per student for transportation to and from school. Others speculated on whether or not added income from Colebrook student tuitions could result in more curriculum offerings for students from both towns. Special education, too, might be an issue. “In Norfolk, we take care of all of our children, no matter what their talents,” Carr said. “Who can say what will happen (in a merger situation)?”
First Selectman Sue Dyer agreed with Lockwood’s contention that speculation about either model is premature. “This is very preliminary. We’re hoping that Regional 7 does a K-12 study. We owe it to the taxpayers to find out whatever information we can,” she said. Dyer also agreed that none of the proposed changes could take place, “unless the town votes on it.” Finally, she cautioned against the idea of significant cost savings over the long haul because of consolidation. “Whatever savings you are going to get from this will be realized in the first year. After that, costs will continue to go up (at the same rate they do for every other school system).”
Selectman Jim Stotler, who was a BOE member during the Colebrook partnership deliberations in the 1980s and in 1993, contended that under any scenario, voting for or against a school merger referendum is, “no simple matter. It’s not a simple vote,” Stotler said.

Photo By Bridgette Rallo