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A proposal to consolidate all Chester, Deep River, and Essex public schools under the Region 4 umbrella that already serves the district’s middle and high schools is gaining momentum, though a few troubling spots remain for some area officials. To get more local input, a regionalization forum will be held Tuesday, April 14 at 6:30 p.m. in the John Winthrop Middle School Media Center.

In January, the Chester, Deep River, and Essex boards of education each individually requested that the Regional School District 4 Board of Education propose a plan to add all grade levels in the three communities to the regional school district structure. A committee of six working groups made up of elected educational and municipal officials has been meeting for the past several weeks to formulate the draft proposal of the recommended plan of action (find the draft plan at www.reg4.k12.ct.us).

“This process has been a collaborative one, which has included a lot of respectful debates,” said attorney Anne Littlefield, who has overseen this process, to the audience of 14 tri-town residents and representatives from the boards of education in each town who attended a March 30 meeting on the topic.

The draft plan states that regionalization will improve educational services for students, increase administrative and staff time spent on educational initiative, reduce redundancy in budgeting and reports, enhance budget efficiency and transparency, and allow for a greater opportunity to apply for additional and equitable grant funding.

“Think of the kids; get them what they need,” said PTO member Kate Sandman of Essex. “All three towns already work together in such a holistic way, this is the next step, and it is long overdue. It needs to happen.”

State legal requirements will direct some aspects of a regionalized district, including the size of the Board of Education. At this time, the number of members is expected to be somewhere between 9 and 12, which hasn’t made everyone happy.

“By and large I am in favor of regionalization, but I am concerned that we are proposing that a board of only 9 to 12 people will be making all these decisions,” said Chester Board of Education member Rob Bibbiani.

Another sticking point with the current language is the possibility that one town might get stuck with an elementary school of just one grade. The plan states, “The committee does not anticipate that, for the first five years after adding grades pre-k through 6, the district will make significant changes to the operation of the grades served at the three elementary schools, with the exception of financial and administrative efficiencies or the potential reconfiguration of elementary grades…For the purpose of this plan, the term ‘elementary school’ shall mean a school including students enrolled in any grade level from pre-kindergarten through grade 6.”

“I am happy to hear that this is a draft document. I am in favor of regionalization, but I am not in favor of the proposed plan as drafted,” said Chester Board of Finance member LoriAnn Cylmas. “By including language that allows any one grade level to make up a grammar school is a back door. We do not want to pit towns against each other, and Chester will have the smallest voice.”

Enrollment is declining in all three towns, but enrollment at Chester Elementary School is particularly low, which has led many in the community to question its longevity. The draft plan spells out how any such closure would be enacted: in “the event that the closure of an elementary school is recommended by the district Board of Education, this plan shall require the district to receive voter approval for the elementary school closure through a referendum held by the municipality in which the elementary school that is slated for closure is located, with such referendum to be held prior to the implementation of any elementary school closure decision by the district Board of Education. If such closure is approved within the municipality in which the building is located, the elementary school building and grounds shall revert to municipal control.”

Several more informational meetings are being held to inform residents about this draft proposal and entertain questions and concerns. The time line is to have the plan go to referendum this June, then on to a vote in September. If it passes, the plan would not go into full effect until July 1, 2016.

“This plan is a great opportunity for the schools that are already functioning well together to come together more. It feels like this is the right time; enrollment is projected to be challenging for the next 15 years,” said Essex Board of Education Chair Lon Seidman.

“I think the plan makes sense,” said Deep River Board of Education Chair Michelle Grow. “We’ve all given and taken, so we all feel we are getting what we want, and we want the public’s voice to be heard. We are going to keep tweaking this plan and looking it over to make sure it is beneficial to the kids.”

“This plan cannot afford to be defeated by fear,” said Chester Board of Education Chair Wendy King.