New super gets right to work addressing school construction projects

The area in front of the Dean S. Luce School that abuts Pleasant Street will be a construction zone when school reopens to students on September 7, but new Superintendent of Schools Jeff Granatino is confident that the project — which involves building a circular driveway to accommodate bus traffic — will not become a distraction nor interfere with school activities.

Granatino, in his first public appearance since taking over for Dr. John D’Auria on July 1, seemed perfectly at ease alongside members of the School Committee as he delivered a status report on the new driveway as well as the school district’s other planned project: a four-room permanent addition at the John F. Kennedy School on Dedham Street.

Speaking at the School Committee’s July 29 meeting, Granatino addressed some of the challenges inherent in both projects, including some uncertainty over the likelihood of obtaining state reimbursement funds for the JFK addition; however, he said he was optimistic that construction on both would move forward as planned, beginning with the Luce project later this month.

Granatino explained that the new bus loop, which was initially targeted for completion by the end of the summer, encountered minor delays after some of the neighbors on Pleasant Street expressed concerns with the project. He said most of their concerns were legitimate, and they ranged from questions about snow removal and driveway width to questions about the new configuration’s impact on traffic.

Fortunately, he said school and municipal officials, led by Selectman John Connolly and Luce principal Robie Peter in cooperation with the town engineer, were able to address the majority of the neighbors’ concerns, resulting in a unanimous approval by the Zoning Board of Appeals late last month.

Granatino said construction could now commence as soon as this week, barring any last-minute objections, and should be completed sometime in late September.

Besides rerouting bus traffic away from Independence Street, the new driveway will also result in a noticeable change for parents who drive their children to school. In a follow-up interview last week, the superintendent made it clear that only buses will be able to enter the school on the Pleasant Street side, while parents, many of whom have grown accustomed to parking along Pleasant Street for pickups and drop-offs, must instead use the other entrance and will no longer be permitted to park at the nearby Knights of Columbus building.

“It was a safety issue,” Granatino said of the cars parking along Pleasant Street. “But I think we will be able to work it out just fine.”

As for the JFK project, Granatino said there has been no construction timeline established, although he would prefer that it be completed during the summer season if at all possible. He also indicated that the project, which calls for two new classrooms on the first floor and two on the second floor, would move forward with or without state funds because the money has already been allocated as part of the recently approved FY11 capital budget.

He said school officials will do their best to secure at least a partial reimbursement from the Massachusetts School Building Authority; however, he said there is “no guarantee” that the MSBA will accept their application — not with “dozens if not hundreds of other projects lined up across the state,” including many that are currently unfunded.

In other school-related news:

* The School Committee approved a request by high school principal Doug Dias to gradually increase the minimum number of credits students must earn in order to graduate. Dias explained that the previous graduation requirement of 100 credits is no longer appropriate now that full-year courses have increased from five to six credits. Students in the class of 2011 will now need 110 credits to graduate, with the requirement increasing by an additional five credits in both 2012 and 2013.

Beginning this year, students will also be required to complete two years of lab-based science courses in order to graduate — up from the previous requirement of one year. Dias said more changes like this will be requested in the coming years as part of his effort to better align the school’s requirements with those recommended by the state.

* The School Committee approved stronger academic requirements for extra-curricular eligibility, effective this upcoming school year. Students must now be enrolled in more academic courses than was previously required, and they will not be permitted to participate in any activity or sport if they receive more than one failing grade in a major academic class per marking term. Eligibility requirements for the first marking term remain unchanged, however, and will continue to be based on a student’s final grades from the previous academic year. The complete policy, including all changes, will appear in the school’s 2010-2011 student handbook.

Superintendent Granatino, a former athletic director, praised CHS athletic director Danny Erickson for his continued efforts to raise the school’s academic standards, noting that, at most schools, the AD is “not usually the person leading that fight.”

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Posted by Jay Turner on Aug 12 2010. Filed under News, Schools. Both comments and pings are currently closed.