SAUGUS — The School District is seeking support for its overflowing elementary school class sizes of up to 28 students.
Superintendent Dr. David DeRuosi said in a meeting Thursday night that the largest elementary school class is at the Waybright Elementary School with 28 students. Three classes have 25 students, three have 24, and four have 23 children.
“At this point they’re pretty much stable,” said DeRuosi, who agreed to hire a substitute teacher to provide support in the largest class until a certified teacher can be hired.
School Committee member Arthur Grabowski expressed concerns that the larger classroom included children with special education needs.
“I spoke to several parents on Founder’s Day and many of their children are special needs kids and they’re not happy with the quality of what’s going on in that room,” Grabowski said.
Veterans Memorial Elementary School has three grade 3 classes with 24 students each, three kindergarten classes with 23 students each, and four grade 1 classes and a grade 5 class with 22 students each.
In addition to a classroom with 28 students at Waybright, a grade 1 class has 25 students and a kindergarten class has 25. Oaklandvale Elementary School has a grade 5 class with 25 students, a grade 1 class with 23 students, and both a grade 4 and grade 1 class with 22 students.
In a meeting at the end of August, DeRuosi reported that some elementary classes were nearly maxed out at 25, which was down from the daunting class sizes of up to 30 students they faced in June. Parents were given the option to move their children to schools with smaller class sizes over the summer, which helped even out some of the numbers, he said.
“My goal is to really go back in and try to level some off,” DeRuosi said in August. “But, I think we have now officially raised a question about really redistricting and trying to create equity.”
He proposed the committee start talking about the transition into a new structure for the district that includes less school buildings.
Saugus voters decided in June that the district will ultimately be transformed to contain one lower elementary school for Pre-K through grade 2; one upper elementary for grades 3-5; and a combination middle and high school. The new school structure will replace the existing four elementary schools, middle school and high school. The Ballard Early Childhood Center building was closed over the summer.
Sixteen-year-old Veterans Memorial Elementary School will become the lower elementary building. Modifications would be made to the Belmonte Middle School and it will become the Belmonte STEAM Academy. The upper elementary school will have a special focus on science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics.
“I’m asking to explore it because, eventually, you’re going to have to,” DeRuosi said.
Grabowski expressed concern that class sizes were nearing state restrictions that limit the average class size to 25. During Thursday’s meeting, he initially requested a paraprofessional be put in the third grade classroom with 28 students. Chairwoman Jeannie Meredith said she would prefer a certified teacher and the rest of the board agreed.
