Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout1961-SC-rpt A Message to Lexington's Citizens.pdf A Message to Lexington's Citizens from the Lexington School Committee and the Lexington Standing School Building Committee ON JULY 10 you will be asked to vote whether or not the town should continue with its plans to build added high school facilities. A YES vote will keep the project moving To help you make up your mind, here are some facts about the proposed plans. The Need IN TWO YEARS, 2150 of Lexington's young prepared. We are now ready to work up people will be looking for high school class- final plans and ask for bids for construction. rooms. If we do not build new facilities, 1000 of these boys and girls will be without a ENROLLMENT place to go to school and each year the GR 1 -12 numbers will rise. To be ready for them we - 3000 need to start construction as soon as we can. Over a year ago, after careful study, sev- eral committees of taxpayers working with -25'00 the school authorities determined that the least expensive and educationally best solu- tion to this problem is one centrally-located and centrally-administered high school for 2700 young people instead of two separate ones. There is no justification for duplicating - /So0 high-cost secondary school facilities like kitchens, auditorium and shops. .1000 • The Town Meeting assigned the project to the town's Standing School Building Commit- tee last November 28, 1960, and preliminary - 500 • plans for such a school, which will include our present high school building, have been i4so /740 /970 The Cost LEXINGTON should have good but not 3.1 expensive school buildings. This town - TAX COST has felt we can have schoolhouses which meet our needs adequately but are stripped of frills—if we plan carefully Our post-war schools have measured up to these tests they have served our children well but they 2.0* have cost us much less than the prices paid by many of our neighboring communities. Every one of our schools has been in the middle price range in comparison with simi- lar towns. Every one has been built with an eye to long-range maintenance costs as well boo as initial expense. The preliminary plans for the proposed new high school facilities follow this prac- tice and policy As a matter of fact, they are a little cheaper, on a per-pupil basis, than .11. 1,7 ,72 '97 'Bz our existing high school. (Continued on Page 4) The Program IEXINGTON has a national reputation for ness subjects, shop, art and technical draw- ) the quality of the education it provides ing, physical education, music. for its young people. Families move here What will be taught in the new buildings? because of our schools. We take pride in our The same courses. In addition, we will be concern for our children and for their future. able to strengthen our science program mark- Our town recognizes full well the threat to edly Over 80% of the students will be tak- our way of life which now faces us, and ing a laboratory science course each year knows that we are going to depend for our We will also be able to improve our physical very survival on the character and ability education program and permit more young- of the boys and girls now in our classrooms. sters to participate. Lexington is proud of its record. No town Our community has demonstrated over and in Massachusetts had a higher proportion of over again that it believes that every child, honors winners in the National Merit Schol- whatever his talents may be, should receive arship Program. In a nation-wide achieve- the best possible education—in his interest ment test, our stridentslaced high in the and in the country's interest. p g top 10%, 70% of the class of 1961 is going What do we teach now in our high school? on for further study English grammar,composition and literature, The young men and women who go directly History, Mathematics, Science (Biology, into the business world are highly successful Chemistry and Physics), Latin, Modern in finding jobs and perform with distinction. Languages. These are the basic subjects In the proposed new high school we will be which are taken each year by 60% of the able to carry on this program, and maintain high school population. What else do we the town's traditional concern for the educa- offer? Instruction in home economics, busi- tion of its children. The Proposed Facilities THE Standing School Building Committee, Use of the Present Building which has prepared the preliminary The proposed plan makes full and efficient plans, is a group of seven taxpayers, most use of the present building with some renova- of whom have had the responsibility and the tion. With the exception of the science and experience of building two other schools for the additional physical education area, all of the town, worked with the School Commit- the specialized central areas for art, music, tee, the School Department, other Lexington shop, homemaking and business courses will citizens, architects and consultants to design be provided in the main part of the present the best possible plan given the number of building using the present science section, children involved, the site selected, the money cafeteria and some of the standard class- available and Lexington's continuing belief in rooms. The remaining space will provide the importance of education for its young classroom units for 900 pupils. people. Classroom Units They started an intensive study of the In order to retain the benefits of smaller problem and examination of other schools in schools and still take advantage of the pos- November 1960, and have spent over 1000 sibilities of the large school, students will be man-hours discussing the details. All l)os- grouped in segments of 300 with a classroom sible alternative methods of housing the stu- unit as home base. dents in facilities which will provide for the This kind of physical arrangement of stu- established program at minimum overall cost dents, which goes back at least fifty years in to the town have been evaluated. American education, is now in practice in The one selected is, in our opinion, in the many school systems including Norwood, best interests of the town and of its children Brookline and Newton It permits close con- tact between students, teachers, guidance tional methods improve, without adding sig- counselors and health services and avoids the nificantly to the cost. kind of impersonal, mass-produced education in which the individual student—especially Physical Education Facilities the youngster who does not stand out aca- The present gymnasium is an excellent demically—gets lost in the crowd. facility Rather than construct additional Two such units will be combined in each space of the same type to care for the addi- of three efficient buildings, while the remain- tional 1500 pupils, however, the plans call for ing three will be provided in the existing a fieldhouse with a large dirt-floored area and building Each unit will house instructional an indoor track, plus some wood-floored area areas for 200 for subjects such as English, for specialized exercise and sports. This type History, Math, languages, which do not re- of facility, which has been successfully used quire special facilities. At any given time in other towns, will permit more varied in- one-third of the students will be in the central struction and a broader varsity and intra- area for the courses based on special facilities mural sports program for more youngsters. like shop, science or music. Decentralized The large area—200 feet in diameter— eating in each of the nine classroom units would also serve for major school or com- permits better scheduling and more efficient munity gatherings. Although sizable in area, overall use of space than a large central the low cost per square foot means that the cafeteria and at no greater cost. Each structure is actually slightly less expensive unit would have a small sub-library for books than the equivalent conventional gymnasium. in regular use by the students of that unit. Contrary to what some people believe, the Central Services construction of several buildings of this size The present building does not provide in this instance is not more expensive than enough space for services such as guidance, a single building because• health and program direction for the expand- 1 The nature of the site makes separate ed school, nor for the central reference li- units preferable both structurally and on brary In addition, a school of this size requires a meeting place for groups larger the basis of foundation costs. than the 100 to 125 which can meet in the 2. With proper selection of building shape classroom units and smaller than the 1200- multiple buildings do not have more out- pupil groups for the large auditorium (which side wall for the same area as compared will be utilized much more than at present) to a single structure of the type required Therefore, a lecture hall for 300 will be in- by the school building regulations. cluded. These facilities will be combined in 3. The total area required can be reduced a small connecting structure between the by eliminating corridors and using inside present building and the science building space efficiently Materials of Construction Science Savings in first cost can be achieved by the The demand for science education and for use of low cost materials and equipment, but more up-to-date science instruction has in- in general such savings are more than offset creased rapidly in the last three or four by the cost of maintenance and replacement. years, completely outstripping the available State aid of 45% on initial purchase but not space. In order to provide the facilities on maintenance or replacement is an impor- needed for 2700 pupils, fifteen laboratories tant cost factor Many of these choices re- and twelve classrooms are required. The pro- main to be decided. The Committee will posed building is the largest and most ex- evaluate each set of alternatives for material pensive part of the total project. It has been or equipment on the basis of lowest overall designed so as to allow for future modification cost for the first seven to ten years of use as both science subject matter and instruc- of the building In Summary WHAT ARE WE to do with the children Delay on projects like this has been ex- now in our schools who will be looking pensive for Lexington in two post-war school for the high school4Oesksto which they are programs, restudy of projects has produced entitled in 1963? We must provide a school virtually no change in the figures but has for them. We must do it adequately and in- cost the town money because of rising con- expensively struction charges and duplicated planning expenses. Furthermore, it has penalized The plans approved by the Town Meeting some youngsters. Members on June 19 will do the job, with In a brief statement of this kind, it is a maximum impact on the tax rate of about obviously impossible to cover all possible $2.80 The proposed facilities fall in the mid- details. If you have any questions please feel dle range of school costs. free to call a member of either committee. School Committee Standing School.Building Committee Sanborn C Brown, Chairman Austin W Fisher, Jr., Chairman Dan H. Fenn, Jr, Secretary Stephen T Russian, Secretary-Treasurer Donald T Clark Robert B. Kent Mrs.Mildred B. Marek William G Potter Gordon E Steele Alvin W Davis Frederick K. Johnson Mrs. Robert T Davison The Cost foot basis, the figures show that these plans (Continued from Page 1) are reasonable, and consistent with Lexing- The total cost of the project is high— ton's established practice. $4,300,000—because we must ultimately The cost of these new facilities will be provide for 1500 additional students over and equivalent to a maximum of about $2.80 on above the 1200 the high school currently the tax rate, and this will not come until holds. With state aid, the total bill will be 1963. In 1962, the increase will be under about $2.2 million plus interest charges. fifty cents, from the high point of $2.80 in When figured on a per-pupil or per square 1963, it will decrease steadily each year r____------------------------------- GYMNASIUM ---. CLASSROOM UNI r l OC R t CENTRA alai C�A S S INFORMATION '`- -.-___� UNI T HEA 1 G � P ANT SCIENCE �L'1lDING NNE•OL....,..________________ EXISTING G CLASS 110MUNIT r) From "History of Lexington" Volume 1, Page 390 On the establishment of the first High School in 1854 . . . "There was considerable opposition to the high school when it was first established; but it has so commended itself to the good sense of the people . . . that the people gen- erally now regard this school not only as a permanent institution, but one which has proved a blessing to the community. It has afforded an opportunity to every parent to give his children a good education at much less expense than it could have been obtained in any other way . . . Besides the mainte- nance of a high school redounds to the honor of a town and tends to increase the value of property." School Committee Standing School Building Committee BULK RATE 1557 Massachusetts Avenue U. S. Postage Lexington 73, Massachusetts PAI D Boston, Mass Permit No 58829 John E. Ward 15 Robinson Rd . Lexington 73. Mass. GET THE FACTS AND VOTE JULY 10, 1961