Parents, school staff, and Marion School Committee members alike are troubled by a reduction in physical education slated for the next school year at Sippican School that will bring two phys ed sessions per week down to just one.
On April 6, school administration presented the mostly level-service $5.86 million fiscal year 2017 Sippican School budget to the public, and they faced some backlash over cutting one .5 phys ed teacher position.
One staff member and town resident, Kelly Kelleher, said she appreciates the budget constraints, but said cutting PE down from two to one gym class per week could affect the health and wellbeing of the children.
“I’m just so afraid that if we cut the .5 position, we won’t get it back,” said Kelleher. “I just hope it can’t die here on the floor today.”
School Committee Chairman Christine Marcolini said she agreed one-hundred percent.
“I don’t want you to think that because that position is something that we’re not funding is something that we don’t want to do,” Marcolini said. “At the end of the day, we had to make some very difficult decisions … about what battles we’re going to fight, and for us, it did come down to [smaller class sizes].”
Marcolini continued, “I don’t want the perception that we’re not taking our kids’ health very, very seriously because we are…. At the end of the day, we only have the money that we have to work with, and right now we’re doing the best we can with what we have now.”
Driving the roughly $230,000 budget increase this year were a number of factors, including a $15,000 increase to provide transportation for students to Bristol County Agricultural High School that was once provided by a Rochester Senior Center van. Day tuition was up $150,000 and residential tuition, $60,000. A main factor this year was a restructuring in the way the school district uses circuit breaker money, which is money the state refunds to the town for unforeseen costly increases in special education during the school year.
Some suggested that perhaps an extra recess could make up for the physical exercise throughout the week, but Sippican School Principal Lyn Rivet explained that the time students are in specialist class is time allotted for curriculum planning as mandated in the teacher contract.
Superintendent Doug White told inquiring attendees of the meeting that residents could petition the selectmen to form a 501(c)(3) organization to supplement the budget and maybe one day raise enough to bring back the .5 physical education position and a health teacher for the school. There was also questioning as to why a Proposition 2½ override was not pursued this year.
“There just wasn’t enough momentum to bring it forward at this time,” said White.
School Committee member Kate Houdelette said when it came down to making the decision to cut phys ed, it was either that or increase class sizes.
“We truly feel that the smaller class sizes are the way to go,” Houdelette said. “This is something that we’re not just going to take lying down. I understand just how important physical education is for kids … and this has been truly hard for all of us.”
Houdelette called it a “speed bump” in the road, “But it’s not over yet….”
School Committee member Christine Winters said this year’s budget process was “the most exhaustive” since she joined the committee seven years ago. She said the committee had to choose options that had the least impact on the students.
“It’s not easy,” Winters said. “It’s not easy at all. It’s a bad year. It’s a bad year all the way around.”
In other matters, the committee voted to opt out of the school choice program this year by deciding not to add any new slots in order to keep class sizes down.
The budget, class size, and where the school currently is, said White, is manageable under the circumstances.
“I believe our class sizes are at a position to be managed at the staff size we have and no additional staff is needed,” said White.
The next meeting of the Marion School Committee is scheduled for May 4 at 6:30 pm at the Marion Town House.
By Jean Perry