The state school building authority and town officials are once again partners in mapping out with town residents a plan to modernize Swampscott schools. Like the oft-referenced phoenix rising from the ashes, a transformative plan for town schools is poised to spread its wings.
Will a school construction plan for the Hadley Elementary School fly higher and farther than the ill-fated district-wide elementary school plan that crashed and burned in 2014?
Only time will tell, but town officials, beginning with School Superintendent Pamela Angelakis, appear to be taking a thoughtful long-range approach to local school renovation and replacement.
Angelakis in the spring submitted official statements of interest to the state for Hadley and for Swampscott Middle School. She has stated she intends to submit statements for the Clarke and Stanley Schools next year.
In praising the state’s acceptance of Hadley into the school building review process, Angelakis said, “We are focused on how we make K-12 education in Swampscott equitable for all students.”
Focusing long-term renovation and construction plans on existing town schools represents a simple and solid approach to addressing a vital town need. In 2014, town officials thought big and aimed high with a scheme that included tearing down Stanley; building a new elementary school next to the middle school and converting Clarke into a school for the town’s youngest children.
The 2014 plan looked bold, innovative and extremely complicated on paper. Three months after it won final approval from state officials, the district-wide concept got shot down at Town Meeting. That defeat set the stage for an even bigger defeat at the polls.
School Committee Chairwoman Amy O’Connor’s words resonated with truth this week when she told the Item: “We are really thankful to have another opportunity to discuss the facility needs with the community.”
Working with school officials, state School Building Authority officials will spend nine months focusing on cost questions and state financial assistance related to the Hadley project and assess “community readiness” to move the project forward in the state review process.
That readiness is what O’Connor is referring to when she referred to the community discussion that must unfold around the Hadley project.
Focusing that discussion on plans for one new school instead of opening a debate over retooling education in Swampscott will go a long way to making the Hadley project a reality and securing the necessary state approval and money.
Angelakis this week demonstrated why she enjoys strong support from the School Committee, by noting that school planning must take into consideration long-term town financial concerns. Swampscott appears to have learned its lessons from 2014 and the town is off to a good start with a new plan to improve town schools.
