The start of the upcoming school year might also mark the start of resumed discussion about how to accommodate projected middle school growth in Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools.
Superintendent Steven Constantino hopes to have a joint meeting in early September — though the timeline could change because he does not want to force himself to adhere to a too-tight deadline — with the City of Williamsburg, James City County and the School Board to present a new suggestion for accommodating short-term middle school growth.
In mid-June, Constantino was sent back to the drawing board after James City County supervisors said they were unsure building a new school for 900 students was the best financial option now.
Though the month is interrupted by staff vacations, Constantino said he has had a preliminary meeting with his staff, and has asked consultants to provide some additional insight. Constantino is hopeful he will receive information and preliminary drawings by the end of July for a school designed to accommodate short-term growth and expand in the future.
With a little more than a month before reaching the timeframe in which Constantino hopes to have a suggestion, he is not yet sure of how to best accommodate the influx of new students for the short term.
Constantino is aiming to find a solution that will not be a wasted purchase in the long term. He said he has always thought building a new school would be the best decision, and that may end up still being the case later this year. He is trying to move forward in formulating a recommendation that makes use of about $30 million, which he hopes to receive from the City of Williamsburg and James City County.
James City County budgeted $28.5 million over fiscal years 2015 and 2016 for middle school expansions, but all of the money would have to be borrowed before it could be handed over to the schools. Williamsburg did not budget any funds for a new school this year or next, and City Manager Jack Tuttle said the city and county have not yet determined a funding split.
“It would be my desire to have a school that met the budgetary requirements — that met the short-term solution — that could turn into a long-term solution down the road,” Constantino said. “That would be the most cost-effective option.”
As the middle school accommodations planning process has developed over recent months, supervisors have suggested adding on to existing middle schools. That solution has been ridiculed by school board members and some city officials because it does not help alleviate the capacity constraints of the cafeterias, auditoriums or other shared spaces.
“To be fiscally prudent, we need to do everything in our power not to spend money that isn’t going to benefit us in the long run,” Constantino said, adding the division could build a school with fewer classrooms but larger shared areas to accommodate a larger number of students in the future.
The middle school capacity issue has inspired citizens to offer up possible solutions during comment periods at public meetings.
Jay Everson appeared before the Board of Supervisors during a public comment period at an April meeting, and sent an email to a City Council member in early May, suggesting the schools use the James Blair annex as a magnet school for about 200 students. Constantino and his staff set to work April 22 — the day after Everson spoke to the supervisors — to write a report about the required work to transform the building into a school.
“I basically said I would chase one more rabbit,” Constantino said.
The report was disseminated to the School Board on May 27, and Constantino asked the members to review the report and let him know if they had any other questions. The report was then shared with city and county officials in June for the first School Liaison Committee meeting of the year.
The annex is currently used as office space, and four classrooms are dedicated to a variety of alternate education, including GED class space and an ESL Testing Center. All current offices and classrooms would have to be relocated, and the annex upgraded to meet current safety standards.
The building has not been inspected for safety, and a 2011 estimate for upgrading the space came in at $814,000. That estimate has not been updated.
Additionally, the annex does not have a cafeteria, gym, media center or auditorium. Those rooms exist in the main James Blair building and could be used with some updates. The schools have not commissioned an inspection or cost estimate for those upgrades.
Outside of necessary safety updates, the change from existing space to school space would come with a roughly $1.6 million price tag. Additional purchases required for a new school — including school buses — would cost about $2.3 million, and the school would cost about $1.7 million annually for operation.
About 111 students would be able to attend school in the annex.
Constantino also looked at the option of using the Annex for Bright Beginnings, a pre-school program. The program served 326 students in 28 classrooms during the 2013-14 school year. The program has an annual waiting list of students who cannot be served due to classroom size constraints.
The annex has room for 10 classes, and pre-school class sizes range from eight to 15 students depending on educational needs; the annex could accommodate 80 to 150 students.
Whether the annex could still be considered a viable short-term option is unclear. Constantino said he hopes it is off the table and has not heard a School Board member suggest it be considered, but he is not entirely sure it will not be brought up again.
Since the School Liaison Committee meeting mid-June, Constantino has not spoken with any elected officials or School Board members about what they hope to see as a short-term option. Constantino is continuing through his research process with staff while remaining steadfast in his mission as superintendent, he said.
“While I understand that not everybody agrees with me, I do focus on my function as superintendent and meeting the needs of students,” Constantino said. “My role in this is an educational role.”
Related Coverage:
- WJCC Schools Tasked with Developing New Short-Term Middle School Option
- JCC Supes Change Fourth Middle School Funding Placeholder, Pass Budget
- WJCC School Site Selection Committee Members Announced
- City Council Adopts Lower Budget Than Originally Proposed
- JCC Citizens Voice Concern for Stormwater, Schools Funding in Proposed Budget
- JCC Budget Proposal Focuses on Schools, Public Safety and Stormwater
- James City County Faced with Covering Increased Stormwater, School Costs
- JCC Committee Includes Fourth Middle School in List of Priority Projects
- Funding, Site for Fourth WJCC Middle School Still Uncertain
- JCC Supervisors Want James Blair Kept as Central Office, More Options for New WJCC School
- WJCC School Board OKs Preliminary Budget with Placeholders for Middle School, Central Office
- JCC Supes to Wait Two Weeks Before Offering Opinion on Fourth Middle School, Central Office
- James Blair Still Recommended as Site for Fourth WJCC Middle School
