By Jarret Liotta
UPDATE A parent coalition wants the Westport Board of Education (BOE) to delay any discussions on rebalancing the district.
Students arrive at Westport’s Bedford Middle School on the first day of classes last month. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
In a petition that gained close to 300 signatures in less than 24 hours, the signers said a redistricting decision should await the November election and new BOE members, the reopening of Coleytown Middle School (CMS) next year, and appointment of a permanent superintendent of schools.
The group, calling itself Westport Residents for Educational Stability, said while it was “supportive of potential school rezoning,” it asked that the item—which is tentatively scheduled for a December vote—be removed from future BOE agendas.
The petition said redistricting now when the district is in a “state of extended transition” would have “potentially traumatic ramifications” on Westport students.
Asked to comment on the petition, BOE Chair Mark Mathias said: “We appreciate all input from the community.
“My experience is that the Board of Education is a highly deliberative body, supported by a very qualified administration.”
Mathias and member Neil Phillips are not seeking reelection to the board.
“I am confident that the people involved in the decision-making in concert with our policies will continue to deliver high-quality education in Westport,” Mathias said.
In a joint statement, Youn Su Chao and Lee Goldstein, Democrat candidates for the BOE, acknowledged the argument of the group.
“We share their concerns,” they said, noting there were “too many unknowns.”
“Redistricting is a difficult and painful process,” they said, “even under ideal conditions, and we are far from ideal conditions.”
Republican BOE candidate Liz Heyer said: ” I understand the concerns that are being voiced and I value the passion that Westport residents have for our district. I believe we need an educational model that can sustain fluctuations in demographics to ensure Westport continues to deliver an exceptional educational experience for all students.
“Before making significant changes, we need to ensure we have confidence in enrollment data, understand all concerns being expressed and ensure we can attain a rebalance that is demonstratively better than the current enrollment situation.
“I feel strongly that such a major decision should be made after the November elections so that our community has the opportunity to express its views and the newly constituted board can implement the policies for which it will be held accountable.”
Incumbent GOP BOE member Vik Muktavaram, who is up for reelection, did not respond to a WestportNow query for comment on the petition.
Interim Superintendent David Abbey declined comment.
The prospect of redistricting has been a hotly debated issue for months. It became more urgent with the closure of CMS last fall due to air quality issues and the shifting of its students to the already overcrowded Bedford Middle School (BMS).
At last week’s BOE meeting, Anthony Buono, assistant superintendent of schools for teaching and learning, asked that a timeline including redistricting be kept as a standing agenda item until a decision is made.
While he said that the plan did not have to be implemented for next year, he believed it was important to put something officially in place for when the time came.
Some BOE members said they hoped to see a redistricting plan done even sooner—in particular before new members are elected to the board in November.
They argued that the present board has been discussing the issue for many months and has heard multiple presentations from consultants.
BOE members have said the primary motivation for redistricting is to balance the number of students in the two middle schools in order to have two four-teacher teams in operation in each, at each grade level.
Based on figures presented by consultant Milone & MacBroom in the spring, BMS was operating above its 800 capacity in 2018-19, separate of CMS students who were moved there, with 860 students.
CMS, with a capacity of 600 had merely 456 students, thus resulting in much lower class sizes, which have been a sore point for some parents.
District projections are expected to drop to a low point of 5,074 overall in 2026-27 before starting to creep up again, at least according to the consultant.
This new school year, however, after initially planning for 5,369 students based on consultant projections, had only 5,252 students registered—117 fewer than had been expected, Abbey told the board.
“We believe that using enrollment data after Coleytown Middle School is reopened is more stable and representative … than the data in the current reports,” said parent Jennifer Bagnato, one of the group’s organizers.
According to the consultant, the five elementary schools are at different levels of capacity, with Greens Farms School the lowest at 78 percent, and Kings Highway School the highest at 89 percent, with Long Lots School right behind it at 88 percent.
While these numbers are not targeted as being of large concern to the BOE in terms of equity, it has been mentioned that equalizing them through redistricting could be a sound byproduct of a plan aimed to bring equity to the middle schools.
Overall elementary enrollment numbers, at least according to the consultant, are expected to bottom out in 2021-22 at 2,226, then grow slowly after that, expected to reach just 2,319 in in 2028-29.
Bagnato also highlighted a pending facilities report being done by another consultant, as well as potential new costs for redistricting as sound reasons to postpone a vote on a plan.
“The new superintendent is a key stakeholder,” Bagnato said, adding while hired as an interim, his contract could extend beyond next year.
“It is important that he or she is able to review updated enrollment data, contribute to the analysis, and integrate public and educator commentary before the BOE vote,” she said.
Parent Brian Whiting is also among those who signed the petition.
“Many of us in the Westport community would like our Board of Education to be transparent regarding the supposed urgent need to make a decision on redistricting as early as a November or December meeting,” he said.
“We need community buy-in (and) must not be rushed into a decision,” he said.
This story has been updated with comments from GOP BOE candidate Liz Heyer.
