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ELMSFORD, N.Y. – After three years of research, the Elmsford Union Free School District is still looking into the possibility of consolidating Alice E. Grady Elementary School and Carl L. Dixson Primary School.
With the procedure still in progress, the administration wants community feedback. After a small turnout to the first public information session, Superintendent of Schools Barbara Peters encourages Elmsford residents to voice their opinions about the possible consolidation, especially at the upcoming information meeting on Monday, Aug. 27.
"We did not believe that Dixson, in its current state, was acceptable for educating our children," Peters said about the root of the consolidation.
Last year, an architectural firm conducted a study to find the best option for the primary students. The cost-benefit analysis showed that moving the Dixson students to Grady was less costly than repairing the building or completely rebuilding it at the same location. At a past district facilities task force meeting, it was estimated that the project, depending on where the additional wing was placed, might cost $16 million to $18 million.
"The children deserve space that allows for them to truly have the advantages of a 21st-century education," said school board President Matthew Evans. "This potential expansion of Grady will allow for that. And that is so crucial. If you have a building that your students are proud of and they can call home, it is going to show positively in academic performance."
Dixson, which was built in 1894, is the oldest of the three Elmsford district schools. If the consolidation took place, Grady would receive its second upgrade since being built in the 1950s.
"I see the benefits as being able to save money on the upkeep of one building," Evans said. "It would be beneficial to the district. If you look at research, there is an academic advantage to having a school from kindergarten through grade six. With all the teachers and administrators in the same building, you would be able to see a greater level of collaboration and understanding. It would really help our children."
School officials have said there will be more continuity for the students as they graduate to elementary school. It is also anticipated that the students will feel a camaraderie, making the transition between grades easier.
"There are many benefits to the plan," Peters said. "As with any plan, there are also disadvantages and problems. And you will never please everyone. But we do want to hear from the community now. What are things that we possibly may have overlooked so that we can see if this is workable and if we should move forward or not."
While no decision is expected to be made until the end of the year, it could be sent to a community vote in December if the school board decides to continue with the plan.
The Aug. 27 meeting will begin at 7 p.m. in the Alexander Hamilton High School library, where presentations will be given about the plan and its possible long-term effects on the community. Hamilton High School is at 98 S. Goodwin Ave.
Comments (5)
The prior use of cash for the addition at Grady is a whole other issue. The use of cash for a capital project of that nature is not good practice,… and further illustrates problems with the Districts’ accounting and financial policies (lack thereof).
You hit the nail on the head,… there are many uncontrolled costs, which are increasing every year and the District must have the funds and flexibility to make these payments. In these times of uncertainty to add more costs, in the form of debt obligations, that cannot be cut from a future budget is not good planning.
The Federal Government can print money to “solve” its problems, the Village can’t. Although there are needs of the district, financial responsibility should have a higher priority than all other things. If we tax our community out of their homes what is left?
Wants, needs and what we can afford. I’ve heard the students need an auditorium,… for k and 1st grade? Comon, put that “need” on the back burner. There are other “needs” mentioned that can be put in the same context. People can’t sell their houses, just drive around the Village and look at the For Sale signs. It’s not because of the crime, condition of the road pavement, taste of the water, fire protection,… it’s the tax burden and schools. And 65-70% of the property taxes are school taxes.
We want the schools to be 21st century educational facilities where every bit of attention is paid in the details that will facilitate higher learning for Elmsford students. The sad reality is we are not a community that can afford that kind of campus. Putting aside all of the issues: staff/visitor parking, pickup/drop off, cafeteria use, playground use, student density per acre, design, construction and future impacts to abutting property owners, etc this is not the right time or project for this District no matter what.
This School Board and Superintendent have created a top heavy administration. Replacing dual purpose teachers (when teachers were paid a stipend and performed Dean functions) with additional, non-instructing administrators. The turnover in Grady, look at the number of Principals over the last few years!!! These are the issues that need to be addressed and need to be addressed first. What happened to the head teacher at Dixon, now we have another administrator. There are 950 students!! We are not running a major State University here. These are some of the issues…. Their method is not working, their tools are not solving our problems, they are simply costing the district more money and sinking us farther in the hole and further behind other schools. I don’t mind paying top dollar for educators and administrators, but you should pay for proven experience, not just for the sake of paying.
The issues with Dixon are cosmetic, not structural. The district has overlooked regular maintenance on Dixon in an attempt to win support for this expensive proposal. Floor tiles have peeled up without replacement, plaster and paint is in need of repair as well as a number of basic amenities that would vastly improve the working and learning conditions in the buildings.
There are handicap accessibility issues to be addressed, but can be done at a fraction of the cost of a new wing at Grady. Properties are losing value and they want to raise taxes and spend more.
I would love to have central air in my house but I can’t afford it,… so I do the 20th century thing and open the window and use a fan. In a perfect world we would have brand new buildings; test scores would be the highest in County and a fiscally responsible budget that the tax payers can afford. But no place is perfect, including Elmsford so we have to face the reality of the situation at hand.
@LetsbReal
After reading your post 2 things are obvious.
1. you have never been in Dixson
2. You were not at the meetings where the true situation of Dixson was explained.
There are major issues with Dixson. The building is ancient. The basement storage rooms have the original exposed foundation of BOULDERS.
The admin of Elmsford is not in the business of SPENDING MONEY!! They are in the business of teaching and learning.
I hope that you are not a parent of a young student in Elmsford. Your rationale is that we should only do the bear minimum to pacify the students needs. The issues with the building are much greater than floor tiles and paint.
The reality of the situation at hand is that 6 year olds have to go to school in an building that is not safe.
What you are seeing is the end result of doing just the minimum to keep budgets low. (Just like you want) Everyone screams to keep the budgets down... but you cant keep cutting. There is nothing left in school budgets to cut and there is nothing left to IMPROVE anything.
The reason schools succeed or not is the support of the community. Housing prices are related to school performance. If you want your housing value to improve (who doesnt) then HELP instead of COMPLAIN! Go to the meeting and LISTEN to WHY this is the most viable option. ASK QUESTIONS, not passive agressive comments, and not some crazy ideology that we can just cut bugets to save the day.
I bet the real TRUTH is that you would not want to send your child to Dixson. Maybe you didnt send them there. But not everyone has that choice. If you live in Elmsford and you are against this idea you should go express that. BUT you should also find out WHY it is being proposed. The FACTS and TRUTH. Ask for PROOF. Ask for a tour of Dixson. Ask why it cant be repaired. Ask for photos or engineer reports. Ask what it takes to do major repair work on a building that is on the register or historical buildings. Ask if there is a cheaper option. Ask if they care about kids.
Ask WHY they come to work.
THEN LISTEN
There is no conspiracy.
Interesting points..... and I would like to elaborate on your thoughts and assumptions.
1. I have been to Dixon several times in the last 3 years. I know some parents that currently send their children there. I have not been inside in the last 9 months or so. The classrooms are of adequate size although like everything else the building needs updating. Is it perfect, no, of course not. My point is to take the actions and spend money where there will be the greatest benefit for the performance of the schools at the lowest cost. Unlike a private school where there is only an interest in the students who attend, in a public education system there is an obligation for students as well of those that do not use the schools but must still pay for them. Try this out,…. Call a realtor, any one of them that do business in Elmsford, and ask their impression of buyers and the Elmsford schools. Many buyers shy away (run away) from Elmsford schools but it is not the facilities that have the bad reputation so why is the Board and administration insistent on fixing that first?
2. I haven’t attended the meetings but have followed the documents that have been posted on the internet. Community involvement is necessary and I will attempt to attend.
Who cares about the basement, the texture of storage walls, etc?
I wish i was paying your tax bill,.... 72% of my $10k annual tax bill goto schools. Where have the budgets been kept low? $30 million annual budget, 950 enrolled. That’s $31,578 per capita. For points of reference Our Lady of Mt Carmel, in a building built in 1929 (immaculate!!!! Elmsford facilities should take notes on the OLMC maintenance program) charges about $5,500 per year and Hackley School is $32,000 (good luck getting accepted to that school).
If you really believe the building is unsafe, yet they continue to educate there you should file a complaint with the New York State Education department. The reality is, as the engineering reports confirm, there are NO structural issues with either the original 1894 building or the 1929 annex. The building is safe, it’s just not maintained to a high standard.
Do you really thing a new wing, higher taxes and the same administrators is going to magically raise property values and send scores of new families looking to purchase homes in Elmsford? LetsbReal.
At the end of the day it’s not the buildings, teachers, administrators or programs that will make the difference it’s the PARENTS. Parental involvement is what separates the highest performing schools from the lowest. Elmsford puts up more money per student than most of the top performing districts in the County yet doesn’t measure up. A shiny new wing, with all the amenities isn’t going to solve the problem. No way, no how! If the parents are happy with mediocre performance I’m happy with a mediocre facility.
I do not question the administrations dedication to the children, what I do question is what tools they bring to the table to address the district’s unique issues. Besides a recommendation to spend large sums of money on a new wing to maybe improve some performance, what is there? Why jump to a “solution” so expensive and so drastic before any really progress is measurable?? I question the Boards decisions to create more administrative level positions, I question their appointments, I question their policy decisions. I question many things, but not their dedication to children.
Those points I agree with.
I dont live in Elmsford. I do have some very good knowledge of the school system there.
I know that many solutions were put on the table before the idea of a new wing was choosen. This included a cost/benefit analysis from an outside organization. The new wing at grady was the most beneficial option that met the needs of the district.
I know the proposal is expensive and will cost tax payers. I also know that Elmsford is a debt free school district. It hasnt put up a bond or asked for money beyond the budget for many many years.
The overal budget of a school district has a tremendous amount of costs that are uncontrollable (health care, utilities, etc) that budget in elmsford is basic. There is no extra money that can be cut. This year they even cut the bowling team to try and keep the budget low. Smalle districts always appear to spend more per student because the costs are not actually tied to the number of students. You need a supt and a principal for each building. if you want an admin that is not incompetent you need to pay a fair competitive wage (you get what you pay for) so when you divide costs like that, smaller schools look expensive.
And remember that mt carmel gets a lot of its money (for text books, special ed services and transportation) from the public schools, including elmsford.
overall i dont think the new wing is a terrible idea. You are right though, the PARENTS need to speak up and start SUPPORTING the schools. Relators do usher people away from elmsford. I know the schools are improving but they need to parents to start making education a priority for their families.