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A Westport Board of Education discussion Monday night turned from the possibilities of lowering class size to the space needs in various schools across the district, specifically at Bedford Middle School.
Schools Superintendent Elliott Landon provided information to the board on how much more space would be necessary if the maximum number of students in elementary classes was reduced.
While two to 13 additional rooms would be necessary mattering on how small classes were made, Landon said there was only space for two additional classes.
One would be at Green’s Farms Elementary and the second at Saugatuck Elementary, he said.
In order to lower class size, he said, school officials would need to add modular classrooms to schools or even add another school.
The biggest concern for space without changes in class size, however, is at Bedford Middle School, Landon said.
The school is projected to hold 833 students for the 2007-08 school year, he said, and it was built to hold 800 students.
The school opened in the fall of 2001.
Landon said there are not enough pods of classrooms for the number of teams needed at the school, but arrangements are made to fit all the teams.
“We probably should have constructed the extra pod,” he said.
Jim Marpe, board secretary, questioned when board members should consider constructing the extra classrooms or taking some other course of action.
“We need to think about it if we need (the space) and need it soon,” he said.
Landon said he believes modular classrooms could stem the space problems at Bedford for the short-term.
Board Chairwoman Mary Parmelee said if school officials see the trend is going to last longer than one or two years they need to make the decision with the 50-year plan of adding the pod of classrooms or go with the 10-year plan of modular classrooms.
Marge Cion, a board member, however, said school officials should consider other courses of action before spending money, including redistricting.
Coleytown Middle School, she said, is not at capacity.
“Before we ask for more money, we should go through that uncomfortable exercise (or redistricting),” she said.
