alleviating overcrowding in lexington pre-k, elementary and middle schools summary of the status of...

Alleviating Overcrowding in Lexington Pre-K, Elementary and Middle Schools

Summary of the Status of Plans as of February 11, 2015

The Lexington Parents’ Advocacy Group (LPAG) is a group of concerned parents from all nine schools who have taken a strong interest in Lexington's enrollment crisis. We are advocating for smart solutions, faster timelines, and more accountability. We are committed to working in a proactive, constructive manner for the benefit of students town-wide.

This document is not an official Town of Lexington record or report. It was produced independently by LPAG. The school capital projects are still under discussion and may be significantly revised before they are presented to Town Meeting.

Prepared by the Lexington Parents Advocacy Group

SummaryCURRENT AND PROJECTED CAPACITY PROBLEM:

• As of Sept 2014, 5 out of 6 elementary schools were over-capacity. The middle schools were near or at capacity.

• The state-mandated pre-K program is currently over-capacity.

• The Enrollment Working Group (EWG) predicts enrollment will rise significantly by school year 2019-20. Forecast midpoints show increases of 260 in elementary schools and 171 in the middle schools. One member of EWG has strongly urged the School Committee to plan for the high end of confidence limit: growth of 527 students in elementary and 241 in middle schools.

SOLUTION: Add capacity to relieve current overcrowding at the pre-K, elementary and middle schools and best accommodate estimates of future growth.

REACHING THE SOLUTION: Architects from Symmes Maini & McKee Associates (SMMA) have outlined a combination of building concepts that would meet 5-year capacity needs and achieve educational goals.

• An addition to Harrington and a new, larger Hastings would add capacity on both sides of town and would address the longstanding need to replace Hastings. Town-wide redistricting would aim to relieve overcrowded schools and make use of new capacity.

• Pre-fabricated classrooms would be added to Bowman and Bridge to relieve current overcrowding and supplement core spaces in the future. Temporary modular classrooms would be added to Fiske to relieve overcrowding until other projects are complete.

• Plans for pre-K, Harrington & Hastings are interdependent, according to SMMA, and need to be designed simultaneously to build sufficient capacity system-wide.

• A 1-team prefabricated addition to Clarke and a 3-team brick and mortar addition to Diamond with interim prefabricated swing space would address middle school classroom needs.

COST:

• Cost estimates are roughly $91.1 million for elementary schools and $27.5 for middle schools.

NEXT STEPS:

• The School Committee will request funds from Town Meeting to further refine concept details and to develop Concept/Feasibility/Schematic/Design documents for the various projects.

• FAQs on the Ad Hoc and School Committees’ decisions behind this plan and helpful resources are included.2


Current Capacity Problem - Pre-K• Pre-K is over-capacity now.• Pre-K is state-mandated integrated program, where 50% of

students have special needs.• By law, no more than 15 children per classroom.• If enrollment exceeds 15 per classroom, the town must pay for

out-of-district placement and transportation if no other appropriate educational spaces are available.

• This academic year, Pre-K is using part of the Central Administration building for immediate additional space, but it is a temporary solution and cannot solve the problem.

• Pre-K needs 15,000 square foot space to accommodate current program needs and future growth.

3Prepared by the Lexington Parents Advocacy Group

Current Capacity Problem - ElementarySchool SMMA

Capacity Study (based on MSBA formula)

Actual reasonable capacity due to core space restraints and/or ILP requirements (per SMMA and/or School Committee)

Enrollment as of 1/15/2015

Over/Under Capacity

Bowman 578 520 573 53 over

Bridge 573 520 584 64 over

Estabrook 596 596 503 93 under

Fiske 486 486 495 9 over

Harrington 417 417 452 35 over

Hastings 468 (w/ modulars)376 (w/o modulars)

420 429 9 over

TOTAL: 2,959 3036 77 over-capacity

4

Current Capacity Problem – Middle Schools

School SMMA Capacity Study Students as of 1/15/2015

Over/Under Capacity Midpoint

Clarke 810-828 826 7 over-capacity

Diamond 810-828 792 27 under

TOTAL 1620-1656 1618 20 under-capacity


Elementary Enrollment will Continue to Rise• The Enrollment Working Group has forecast the following enrollment growth:

• The EWG has predicted an increase of 260 elementary school students from school year 2013-14 to school year 2019-20.

• A 90% confidence range of this prediction is wide: +/- 267.• One member of the Enrollment Working Group has strongly urged the School

Committee to plan for the high end of the confidence limit – enrollment growth of 527 elementary students instead of 260.

• The School Committee and the Ad Hoc School Master Planning Committee have chosen to plan for the midpoint.

• Since September, 2014, elementary enrollment has grown by 14 students (+0.5%).


Grade Group Method* Enrollment in FY2020 Growth over FY2014

Elementary (K-5) HDM 3188 ± 267 260 ± 267Middle School (6-8) CSM 1830 ± 70 171 ± 70High School (9-12) CSM 2290 ± 120 269 ± 120Total System HDM 7279 ± 410 671 ± 410

*HDM: housing demographic method, CSM: cohort survival method

Middle School Enrollment will Continue to Rise• The EWG has predicted that middle school

enrollment will rise to 1830 by school year 2019-20.• This is an increase of 171 students over school year

2013-14 enrollment, with a confidence limit of +/- 70.

• Current middle school enrollment is 1618.


Solution

• Add capacity to relieve current overcrowding and best accommodate estimates of future growth at the pre-K, elementary and middle schools.


Reaching the Solution – Process Thus Far

• The School Committee formed an Ad Hoc School Master Planning Committee (Ad Hoc Committee) to recommend the best way to add capacity.

• The Ad Hoc Committee hired and has worked with educational architectural consultants from SMMA since June 2014.

• SMMA conducted a three-phase Master Building Plan analysis and report to identify capacity at all Lexington Public Schools, and to present a menu of potential building options and approximate costs.

• The Ad Hoc Committee voted to recommend the concepts contained in “Option 9.”


Option 9 Concepts (elementary)• Bowman: add 2 pre-fab classrooms and 1 music room to help

alleviate current overcrowding; downsize enrollment to 520 when space added elsewhere in town. Available fall, 2016.

• Bridge: add 2 pre-fab classrooms and 1 music room to help alleviate current overcrowding; downsize enrollment to 520 when space added elsewhere in town. Available fall, 2016.

• Estabrook: redistrict to utilize extra capacity.• Fiske: no recommendation.• Harrington: brick & mortar addition to expand pre-K and add space

for additional 138 students. Available fall, 2017.• Hastings: rebuild as a 4 ½ section school to add capacity for 224 more

than current building (180 more than current bldg. w/ modulars) and remedy significant deficiencies of old building. Available fall, 2018.


Option 9 Concepts (middle schools)• Clarke: build pre-fabricated addition by fall 2016 to

alleviate current overcrowding and accommodate one additional team (92 students) plus a special education classroom.

• Diamond: add 8 pre-fabricated classrooms by fall 2016 to be used as swing space and/or teacher planning; remove 6 aging portable classrooms; build brick & mortar addition by fall 2017 to accommodate 3 teams (276 students).


School Committee Additions to Option 9 Concepts• Add 3-year standard modulars to Fiske to alleviate

overcrowding until space is available elsewhere in town.

• The Intensive Learning Program at Fiske (ILP) is nearly full. Once it is full, students will be sent out of district for services, which will cost the town approximately $70,000, plus transportation costs, per student per year and will be very disruptive to these high-need students.

• The English Language Learner (ELL) program has grown substantially and requires more space.

• Investigate a brick & mortar addition to Fiske.


How Would the Elementary Concepts Work?• An addition to Harrington and a new, larger Hastings would add capacity on both sides of

town and would address the longstanding need to replace Hastings.

• Town-wide redistricting would relieve overcrowded schools and make use of new capacity.

• The pre-K would either be expanded at Harrington, moved to Hastings, or built as a free-standing building. If pre-K were removed from Harrington, existing pre-K space would be converted to general education classrooms.

• SMMA has noted that plans for Harrington, Hastings, and the pre-K are interdependent. Designs must be created simultaneously to achieve appropriate capacity.

• Pre-fabricated additions to Bowman & Bridge would help alleviate overcrowding in the short-term and could supplement core spaces in the future.

• Leased standard modular spaces at Fiske would alleviate immediate overcrowding and might accommodate ILP, ELL, or other program needs until capacity was added at Harrington & Hastings.

• Plans for a permanent addition at Fiske would be available if additional capacity is needed in the future.

• Forward redistricting of new families could begin once capacity-building plans are solidified.


14

Sep-13 Sep-14 Sep-15 Sep-16 Sep-17 Sep-18 Sep-19 Sep-20 Sep-21 Sep-22 Sep-23 Sep-240

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

4500

Timing and Effect of Elementary Concepts

BowmanBridgeEstabrookFiskeHarringtonHastingsEWG Enrollment ForecastEWG Enrollment Forecast - 90% Confidence Limit

Elem

enta

ry C

apac

ity

Actual En-rollment Jan 2015 = 3036

Standard modulars added to Fiske (+46)

Pre-fabs added to B&B (capacity remains at 520)

Harring-ton ad-dition opens(+ 138)

EWG’s FY20 forecast of 3188. EWG did not forecast past FY20.

Hastings opens (+ 180) ;Standard modulars removed from Fiske (-46);Town-wide redistricting


How Would the Middle School Concepts Work?

• The Diamond site is better able to accommodate a brick & mortar addition than Clarke, so a majority of space would be added at Diamond. Pre-fabricated classrooms would help alleviate overcrowding in the meantime and would allow the removal of existing aging portable classrooms.

• Pre-fabricated addition at Clarke would help alleviate overcrowding caused by large classes coming from Bridge and Bowman.

• Once Diamond addition is complete, the elementary feeder school pattern may be altered to balance enrollment with capacity town-wide.


16

Sep-2013 Sep-2014 Sep-2015 Sep-2016 Sep-2017 Sep-2018 Sep-2019 Sep-2020 Sep-2021 Sep-2022 Sep-2023 Sep-20240

500

1000

1500

2000

2500Timing and Effect of Middle School Concepts

Clarke DiamondEWG Forecast EWG Forecast 90% Confidence Limit

Mid

dle

Scho

ol C

apac

ity

Actual en-rollment Jan 2015 = 1618

EWG FY20 Forecast of 1830.EWG did not forecast past FY20.

Pre-fabs added at Clarke & Diamond (+92)

Diamond addition opens (+ 276)


Estimated Cost of Concepts, according to SMMAProject CostBowman (2 pre-fab classrooms + pre-fab music room)

$3.1 million

Bridge (2 pre-fab classrooms + pre-fab music room)

$3.7 million

Fiske (2 standard modular classrooms) $1 million

Harrington (6 classrooms, art, music, gym & cafeteria expansion, special ed space, expanded pre-K)

$24.3 million

Hastings (new school with 4 ½ sections per grade)

$59 million

Clarke (pre-fab classrooms for one team) $4.6 million

Diamond (pre-fab swing space + brick and mortar classrooms for 3 teams)

$22.9 million

TOTAL $118.6 million


Next Steps:• The School Committee voted on January 20, 2014 to request

funding from Town Meeting to further refine these concepts. • This is expected to take the form of

Concept/Feasibility/Schematic/Design documents for the various projects to resolve uncertainties such as:

• Whether the Hastings site will support building a new school while the old school is in operation.

• Placement and lifespan of spaces at Bowman & Bridge.• How to balance capacity added at new Hastings with capacity added to

Harrington.• Possible to gain more capacity for less $ with a larger than 4 ½ section Hastings?

• Whether pre-K should remain at Harrington, be built into a new Hastings, or be built as a free-standing building.

• Feasibility of brick & mortar addition at Fiske.• Placement and lifespan of any pre-fab spaces at Clarke and Diamond.• Size and configuration of Diamond addition.• Costs of refined plans.


Next Steps (continued)

• One expert from the AHSMPC has stated that to address these outstanding issues and to build capacity in time to meet EWG projections, funding is needed for:

• Schematics at Hastings, Pre-K, and Fiske• Schematics & design at Harrington and Diamond (brick & mortar portion)• Schematics, design, construction & bidding at Bowman, Bridge, Clarke, and

Diamond (pre-fab portion)

• The School Committee is expected to request an appropriation of $4,080,000 from Town Meeting to pursue these steps, plus $842,000 for Fiske modulars.

• Funding for any further design and construction will be sought at future Special Town Meetings – possibly in fall, 2015 and/or winter, 2016.


The school capital projects are still under discussion and may be significantly revised before they are presented to Town Meeting.

FAQ – State Funding for Hastings• Why not resubmit a Statement of Interest (SOI)

and wait for the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) to fund part of Hastings?

• Hastings is 60 years old and is no longer an acceptable learning environment.

• Replacing Hastings has been one of Lexington’s top capital priorities for years. The 2014 SOI details the many deficiencies of the 60-year old building, including its size, aging systems, failing structures, outdated fire protection, and poor ventilation.

• On February 10, 2015, Pat Goddard told the School Committee that another beam in the gym is cracked. The repair will render the gym unusable for 3-4 weeks.

• The School Committee has no confidence that MSBA will support a new Hastings.

• The School Committee can re-submit the SOI but may never receive support.• Over 100 schools applied in 2014. 15 projects were funded. Lexington was not even

in the top 30 schools visited/considered, according to an MSBA contact.• The schools that received funding were all on “warning” status with a school

accrediting organization, according to SMMA.


FAQ – State Funding for Hastings (continued)• Even if MSBA funding were attainable, MSBA participation could

undermine capacity-building goals.• With MSBA participation, the project would proceed at a slower pace (5 yrs

vs. 3 yrs). Hastings would not be complete in time to accommodate expected enrollment growth.

• MSBA could restrict the size of a new Hastings, limiting the ability to alleviate town-wide overcrowding in the timeframe we need.

• Additional capacity that would need to be built elsewhere to compensate for a smaller Hastings could cost more than MSBA’s contribution.

• Building costs are rising.• If MSBA had approved the 2014 SOI, the School Committee had hoped to

receive 31% of the cost of a new Hastings (approximately $18 million). • Every year we delay, construction costs escalate 5%, according to the

Lexington Permanent Building Committee.• For example, Estabrook project cost $43 million in 2011; SMMA predicts

that same 4.5 section school would cost $59 million in 2016 under current plan.

• MSBA funding of Hastings could hurt chances of receiving MSBA support for a new high school.


FAQ - Redistricting

• What about those empty spaces at Estabrook?• According to Dr. Ash and the School Committee, filling Estabrook

immediately would not save any project costs, and would result in significant transportation costs.

• There are not enough spaces at Estabrook to relieve the need for any of the proposed projects.

• Transporting students to Estabrook would cost about $80,000 per bus.

• The spaces at Estabrook are part of the capacity solution.• Smart redistricting will be implemented after careful study and

planning by experts and community representatives, and full community input.

• As soon as there is some certainty as to where space will be available town-wide, the redistricting process could begin, perhaps starting with new families to town.


FAQ – Redistricting (continued)• Can we redistrict children from the most-crowded

schools (Bowman, Bridge, and Fiske) to Estabrook temporarily?

• The School Committee has carefully considered this and decided it would not work educationally or logistically:

• There is not enough space at Estabrook to relieve the overcrowded schools for the time it will take to complete the proposed construction projects.

• Would require substantial investment in transportation to bus children across town.

• Would cause social disruption and instability as children would likely be redistricted twice.

• There might not be enough space to keep siblings together.• Further consideration of redistricting can occur as building plans develop.


FAQ – Which Other Options did the Ad Hoc or School Committee Consider?• All forms of redistricting (geographic, “cherry-picking” student-by-

student placement, forward redistricting of new families, moving 1/3 of a grade from Fiske to Estabrook). See Redistricting FAQ.

• Changing grade configurations (e.g., K-2 schools, 3-5 schools)• Dismissed by the Ah Hoc Committee because of the educational value of having

younger students and older students together. Also, special ed programs would need to be duplicated and transportation costs would be high.

• Building new school on Laconia Street property• Difficult site because of steep grade, limited access, and privately-owned parcels

contained within the property.

• Building new 5-8 middle school; moving all 5th graders to 3 middle schools

• The Old Harrington Site was considered too small to build a school large enough to accommodate a new 5-8 middle school. No other suitable sites in town.


FAQ – Which Other Options did the Ad Hoc or School Committee Consider? (continued)• Renovating Old Harrington/Central Office

• Would require bringing entire building up to current school building codes and relocating Central Administration. Concerns raised about cost and having two elementary schools on the same property.

• Building brick & mortar wings on Bowman & Bridge• Seen as illogical to add wings to schools that have a lifespan of 20 years after recent

renovations. Pre-fabs with a lifespan of 20 years were viewed as more appropriate.

• Interior renovations to Bowman & Bridge• Dismissed because of the cost (approximately $12 million) and because of the

timeframe, which would require construction during the school year. Would be disruptive to students who just lived through renovations.

• Renovating Hastings• Replacing is a better value given age of building and potential cost of renovation.

• Addition to Estabrook• Possible in the future.


FAQ – Building Terms• Standard Modular Classrooms - The building site is prepared with a

concrete pad, electricity, plumbing, and as needed additional utilities. Structure is built offsite, transported to the building site, placed on the building site, and attached to the school building. All utilities are connected from the modular construction to the school building. They last for about 10 years, can be new or used, may be purchased or leased. They have self contained heating and air conditioning systems, ‐ ‐smaller windows, and wood construction. Installation time after funding is 8 months.

• Pre fabricated Construction‐ – This type of construction is similar in process to the Standard Modular Classroom, but is higher quality and longer lasting. They last for 20 years, have steel construction, integrate into existing heat/AC systems, and have larger windows. Examples of this style construction may be found at the recent addition at the Lexington High School. Installation time after funding is 16 months.

• Brick and Mortar Construction – This refers to traditional construction that is built onsite from foundation to roof with raw materials. It has a life expectancy of 50+ years.

• The following are rough costs per square foot for construction (shared by Pat Goddard in Nov. 2014):

Standard Modular = $130 (site work undetermined if included in this cost)Pre-fabricated = $330Brick & Mortar = $400

Prepared by the Lexington Parents Advocacy Group26

FAQ - Educational Terms

• Team: at middle school, group of approximately 92 students who share the same four core-subject teachers. Require 3 classrooms plus science lab space, plus space shared with other teams for electives, special ed, art, music, etc.

• Section: at elementary school, a general education classroom in a certain grade.

• 4-section school is designed to have 4 classrooms at each grade level plus additional space for special ed, art, music, etc.

• ILP: Intensive Learning Program, district-wide special education program for students on the autism spectrum. Housed at both Hastings and Fiske.

27

Additional Resources• Lexington Public School Committee

http://lps.lexingtonma.org/site/Default.aspx?PageID=463• Ad Hoc School Master Planning Committee

http://lps.lexingtonma.org/Page/5737• Enrollment Working Group

http://lps.lexingtonma.org/Page/5736 • MSBA http://www.massschoolbuildings.org/ • Current School District Maps http://

lexingtonps.schoolwires.net/cms/lib2/MA01001631/Centricity/Domain/376/2010LPSchoolsdistricts.pdf

• Lexington Parents Advocacy Group www.lexparentsadvocacy.org


http://lps.lexingtonma.org/site/Default.aspx?PageID=463

http://lps.lexingtonma.org/Page/5737

http://lps.lexingtonma.org/Page/5736

http://www.massschoolbuildings.org/

http://lexingtonps.schoolwires.net/cms/lib2/MA01001631/Centricity/Domain/376/2010LPSchoolsdistricts.pdf




http://www.lexparentsadvocacy.org/

alleviating overcrowding in lexington pre-k, elementary and middle schools summary of the status of...

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overcrowded schools

year capacity needs

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projected capacity problem

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