Middle schoolers get to stay
By Shane Donaldson/Independent Staff Writer
SOUTH KINGSTOWN — Sixth- and seventh-graders will be able to finish their middle school years in their current schools, thanks to a creative plan by school administrators.
After several months of workshops, Superintendent Robert Hicks announced a redistricting plan for the middle schools Monday night. The big change to his original proposal was that all current middle school students will be ?grandfathered,? meaning they can stay in their current schools.
The School Committee quickly adopted the plan, which was praised by parents who had been concerned about moving students from one middle school to another.
Hicks credited principals Michele Humbyrd of Curtis Corner Middle School and Sheila Sullivan of Broad Rock Middle School and officials from DATTCO, the bus company, for working diligently in recent weeks to develop a plan that met community priorities. From the outset, it did not look like the district would be able to meet its top two goals, which were maintaining neighborhood school zones and keeping sixth- and seventh-graders in place.
?If we were going to allow for grandfathering, we felt it had to be for everyone,? Hicks said. ?It was not fair to offer it only to those who could provide their own transportation.?
The general plan calls for students from West Kingston and Matunuck elementary schools to attend Curtis Corner, while Wakefield Elementary and the majority of the Peace Dale Elementary students will attend Broad Rock. A portion of the Peace Dale students who live within walking distance to Curtis Corner will attend that school.
The grandfathering aspect of the plan will affect 181 students in the sixth and seventh grades - 96 will stay at Curtis Corner, and 85 will remain at Broad Rock.
The sticking point in the process was bus transportation, particularly in the afternoon. Under the plan, the district will run shuttle buses between the two middle schools for two years. By adjusting the middle school day to end at 2 p.m., it was possible for students to board a shuttle bus at 2:04 p.m. and arrive at the other middle school by 2:08 p.m.
Students then would leave the shuttle bus and board the proper bus to get home.
Because middle and high school students ride the same buses home, the high school day also needs to be adjusted to fit the new bus schedule. The high school dismissal will be delayed five minutes (from 1:45 to 1:50 p.m.) to minimize the waiting time for high school students.
Because transportation will be provided for all students, Hicks said he would expect all sixth- and seventh-graders to remain in their current schools. The district will be flexible for two exceptions. If grandfathering a student puts siblings in separate middle schools, the family may opt to have the current student transfer.
Hicks said the district also would allow requests to transfer if such a move would help create more balanced class sizes. According to current figures, Curtis Corner has larger cohorts in sixth and seventh grades (178 compared to 156 in sixth grade, 174 compared to 143 in seventh).
As Hicks finished explaining the plan, the few dozen parents in attendance applauded. Only one parent spoke on the matter.
?On behalf of the many parents in the community, thank you very much,? Cliff Katz said.
The committee members offered similar sentiments.
?I just want to say thank you,? member Ella Whaley said. ?I am thrilled with this plan, and I think it is absolutely wonderful for the students.?
Committee Chairwoman Wendy Bucci echoed her thoughts.
?After the last meeting we had, I did not think we would be at this point tonight,? Bucci said.
?I didn?t either,? Hicks replied.
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