Supt.: State changes to school rules unfair

Click photo to enlarge

J.R. Briggs Elementary School Principal Candace Wright shows exposed wiring in the computer technology space, which is also the faculty work room and assistant principal s office.

* «

* 1

* »

ASHBURNHAM - Superintendent of Schools Michael Zapantis said the state School Building Authority's decision to change some of its regulations "borders on discrimination," against the Ashburnham- Westminster Regional School District.

"(Discrimination) is a strong word," Zapantis said. "I think it speaks to the point of whether the MSBAunderstands (the changes) are exclusionary, and do they understand what it takes to maintain a regional school district."

The MSBA, the public authority that helps pay for school-renovation projects, on Wednesday upheld changes to its regulations made in July, which some say will adversely affect plans to renovate J.R. Briggs Elementary School in Ashburnham.

Zapantis questioned the fairness of those

From left, Dorene Francis, extended day program director, and Candy Savoie, site coordinator, work in the extended day program office at J.R. Briggs Elementary School, which is converted space that was taken from the school. The space used to be the faculty dining room. (SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE PHOTOS/ BRETT CRAWFORD)

changes, the same day more than 40 school-renovation projects were approved by the MSBA. "Let's demonstrate some equity here," Zapantis said.

Zapantis requested that some pieces of MSBAregulations that were canceled in July still be applied to the proposed Briggs Elementary School renovation project, so the district could get the project done with less of a burden on local taxpayers. The Briggs School was built in the 1960s. Zapantis said the building needs to be updated because it needs new plumbing and electrical work, and is overcrowded.

The MSBABoard of Directors reviewed comments submitted by Zapantis during a public hearing on regulation changes earlier this month, but decided to uphold the changes based on a recommendation from

------------

Advertisement

------------

MSBAstaff, said Jeff Wulfson, a Board Member and Associate Commissioner for the Department of Education.

Incentive categories help districts earn "incentive points," which increase the amount of money school districts receive from the MSBA. Zapantis said committee members were counting on an incentive category called "Innovative Community Use," which awards points to districts that find ways to share space with other community groups. The Community Use category was canceled in July because

The assistant principal s office at J.R. Briggs Elementary School is a shared space along with the faculty work room and the computer technology hub. (SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE PHOTOS/ BRETT CRAWFORD)

not enough schools were interested, Wulfson said.

Zapantis said the School Committee and representatives from the Ashburnham Council on Aging were considering a partnership to share space, to take advantage of the Community Use Category.

"This would be an opportunity to learn from someone else's experiences," said Zapantis, of putting senior citizens and elementary school students in close proximity to each other. The school district cannot receive incentive points for such an arrangement now, since Community Use points have been collapsed into a new "regionalization" category, which awards points to school districts that combine with other districts. Zapantis said the only way the district could earn those points would be to de-regionalize,

Library Media Specialist Lynne Pinsoneault works with second graders at J.R. Briggs Elementary School in a small, crowded space that was designed as a reading room, but is now used as the technology room. (SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE PHOTOS/ BRETT CRAWFORD)

and then reregionalize. Mary Lee Muessel, director of the Ashburnham Council on Aging, said the council is interested in the prospect of moving into its own wing at a renovated Briggs Elementary School.

Muessel recently toured Swampscott High School, which houses such an arrangement, and liked what she saw. The Council on Aging may also renovate its current space, the Veterans Memorial School Building. "I think that (senior citizens) were happy to have a choice," said Muessel.

Wulfson said he sympathizes with Zapantis, but since the Briggs renovation project is still in the planning stages, the MSBAwould be hard pressed to make an exception for Ashburnham- Westminster.

"At what point do you protect people who are thinking about projects, but haven't actually been approved for a project?" said Wulfson. Wulfson said districts that are unhappy with MSBAdecisions can find recourse through the Legislature.

State Sen. Stephen Brewer, D-Barre, wrote a letter to the MSBABoard of Directors, advocating for Ashburnham-Westminster on regulation changes. Brewer said he was also disappointed the district will lose access to some incentive points, and that he will "certainly review" regulation changes.

"When you're talking about a multimillion dollar project, every (incentive point) represents hundreds of thousand of dollars," said Brewer. The MSBAis not leaving the Briggs project out entirely. Regulations say 53.53 percent of renovation costs will be reimbursed to the district by the MSBA, though Zapantis said the cost of the Briggs project has not been determined.

Districts can earn up to 18 incentive points to increase the rate of reimbursement. Wulfson explained there are many other areas the district can earn points on the Briggs project, like making use of existing structures. The district will sign contracts with Lamoureax Pagano Associates, a Worcester Architecture Firm, to conduct a feasibility study at Briggs, which is paid for by the MSBA. "I think generally (the MSBA) has done a good job of reconstructing the school building program," said Zapantis.

As for the regionalization category, Wulfson denied it discriminated against existing regional school district, because he said regional school districts undoubtedly benefited from incentives when they formed. Ashburnham Selectman Jonathan Dennehy said plans to rebuild or renovate the building go back to at least 2004, and called the shift away from the Innovative Community Use Category "disappointing," especially since lost incentive points means a bigger bill for residents.

"The more taxpayers have to come up with the money out of pocket on the local level, the harder it is to gain passage," said Dennehy. "We have to change the way we're designing the project to maximize the reimbursement."