The School Committee and administration have
been studying options for expanding cafeteria and classroom space at Needham
High School. Following are key questions
about the identified needs at the school:
Q:
Given many School Committee and Town priorities and the limited
resources available, why is the Needham School Committee looking to add space
to Needham High School seven years after it opened?
A: Needham High School lacks sufficient space to
meet the current and projected needs of its students, staff, and families. The community’s expectation for a high
performing high school program cannot be met with the existing number of
classrooms.
• The
high school is—and will remain—over its capacity by 200 students, all of whom
learn in classrooms designed below contemporary standards. For example, Needham High School (NHS) was
designed for 1,450 students and opened the doors in 2008 with enrollment of
1,404. Current enrollment is 1614 and is
projected to sustain an average of 1,652 students through the year 2028, the
last year for which we have projections.
•
General classrooms at NHS include 760 square ft. of floor space designed
to accommodate an average class size of 22 students. (Current MSBA standards call for classrooms
designed to accommodate 23 students at 850 square ft. per classroom.) Over 125 classes, a quarter of all classes at
NHS, hold 25 or more students; due to the lack of adequate space, the number of
math, English, social studies, and foreign language classes with 25 or more
students has doubled, going from 47 sections in 2007-08 to 95 sections in
2014-15. The number of core academic
classes with 28 or more students has quadrupled in the same time period, going
from 5 sections in 2007-08 to 25 in the current year. Large class sizes limit student-teacher
interaction, instruction, and personalization.
•
Over half the faculty is scheduled into two or more spaces, resulting in
lost preparation time for travel and classroom setup, limited space for
student/teacher conferencing, and the loss of an effective, consistent, and
personalized instructional environment for students. Students report that conversations with their
teachers and requests for assistance are limited, abrupt, and impractical due
to teachers moving back and forth between shared classrooms.
• Conference
and collaboration spaces (e.g., METCO, Science, and English conference rooms)
have been converted into much-needed classroom space, further limiting and
restricting the teacher-student relationship.
This summer a science storage room and the language lab will be turned
into permanent classrooms to help provide spaces for the additional 50 to 60
students attending NHS in the fall.
•
Options for students will become increasingly limited due to the lack of
appropriate space. For example, in the upcoming 2015-16 school year, the lack
of an appropriate lab space will limit the numbers of students taking AP
Biology. It has become increasingly
difficult to provide spaces for special education classrooms and other spaces
to meet the needs of students who may have non-traditional learning needs. The Greater Boston Project, a new and popular
interdisciplinary course involving English, social studies, and math, has 30
students enrolled in the current year; next year’s enrollment tops 90. However, given space constraints, the program
will need to limit participation.
Without additional space, class sizes will continue to stay high;
offices, storage areas, library spaces, auditorium, and other non-classroom
spaces will be repurposed to meet program needs; and academic programs,
including interdisciplinary learning, science instruction, and student support
and special education programs will be dropped or curtailed in order to fit
within the existing and undersized school building.
• The
cafeteria is undersized, and during most lunches the number of students
assigned exceeds the cafeteria’s maximum occupancy of 488. For example, the second lunch seating has an
average of 620 students assigned. As a
result, students are forced to find alternative seating and/or juniors and
seniors eat off campus. The school can
no longer simply add seats; additional space must be provided to meet building
and safety codes.
Q:
What is needed to address the identified space needs at Needham High School?
A:
Needham High School requires a minimum of six new classrooms and an expanded
cafeteria to sustain its current and projected enrollment and to meet the
diverse needs of a high performing academic program.
• The
addition of a minimum of six classrooms will a) provide appropriate learning
spaces for high school academic programs, including math, English, social
studies, science, and special education for the next generation of students; b)
keep class sizes within acceptable ranges; and c) ensure students, teachers,
staff, and families have adequate space to conference, collaborate, meet, and
learn.
•
Certain spaces and rooms that have been repurposed to meet classroom
needs will return to their original use and design. For example, the English
conference/curriculum room, currently scheduled with up to six classes, will be
restored to its original purpose: a space for teachers, students, and families
to study, meet, and conference. The
school will optimize its schedule and spaces to ensure students have options
for academic and co-curricular programs.
• An
expanded cafeteria with 2,500 additional square feet will alleviate
overcrowding and ensure building and safety codes are addressed.
• The FY16 Capital Plan details available
funding for a project in the amount of $4.4 million. Initial estimates, however, suggest a project
with a café expansion and a minimum of six new classrooms may require funding
in the amount of $6.7 million.
The School Committee will pursue at least a
cafeteria expansion project at the upcoming May Town Meeting and then work with
Town boards and officials to continue to study affordable options for expanding
much-needed classroom space.
