Town Officials met on Tuesday, January 10 to discuss possible future cuts that might be made for the 2012-2013 school year. The officials discussed possible impacts to bus services, the middle school foreign language department, high school elective classes, secretary positions, and class sizes within the schools. The very likely elimination of some teacher positions (a primary option discussed by the School Committee) will directly cause the increase in class sizes.
While these increases in class sizes appear tolerable at the high school and middle school level, the high numbers at the elementary level raised the most concern. Elm Street Elementary School Principal Mary Grinavic said, “The class sizes are repugnant. [Teachers] are running out of room in the classroom, and there’s not enough computers in the labs for each student to work on their own.” Mrs. Grinavic further highlighted the difficulties of elementary school teachers to provide sufficient one-on-one support for students in classes of 36-37 students — the numbers expected in the elementary classrooms next year.
Walpole High School Principal Stephen Imbusch said, “First and second grade students are not learning how to read and write well because of the high class sizes, and it gives off a detrimental effect for the rest of their educational career because they have to play catch-up.”
Officials also discussed the elimination of high school elective classes — once an integral part of the students’ schedule. Many members of the committee said electives that should be cut are those that do not service a large number of students. Principal Imbusch said, “Mandarin, for example, is a great program, but it does not service a lot of kids, and may be cut over classes that service a large number of students (Film, TV Production, and Journalism).”
Johnson Middle School Principal Sandra Esmond said, “The only option to make cuts without losing any more exploratories (elective classes) would be affecting the Foreign Language Department.”
With all the talk about cutting elective classes at the middle schools and at the high school, officials discussed the idea of cutting athletics at length. It was argued that athletics should be cut over anything related to education because the education should be the first priority. “Cutting a sport over a teacher could be a solid option, and it would be irresponsible if we did not consider it,” said Superintendent Lincoln Lynch.
Bus services — one of the more costly expenses within the public school budget — was also one of the main topics of budget cuts. Superintendent Lynch said that instead of cutting teachers, they could discuss the possibility of not picking up students within a half a mile or a mile of a school. Cutting at least two buses would save $110,000, but these cuts would reduce bus service coverage significantly within the town, which could anger parents.
Some people also discussed the possible elimination of librarians and secretaries; however, many opposed cutting these positions because it could greatly affect the teachers and students. WHS History Department Head Thomas Morris said, “Without librarians, students are less able to do research projects because they have not learned the research process in the library when they were younger.”
With major budget cuts on the horizon, the entire administrative staff of the Walpole Public School system is brainstorming potential cuts. The list of cuts discussed is only preliminary, and final decisions will not be made until later in the school year.
