UPDATED: Elem School Community Conversation Held at Wheelock

Medfield MA

08 August, 2021

8:31 PM

Description

Elementary School Community Conversation Held at Wheelock Last week the School Building Committee (SBC) held its monthly Community Conversation regarding the proposed new grade four and five elementary school. Approximately 50 Medfield residents interested in learning more about the school and the building process participated either by tuning in remotely via Zoom or attending in-person at the Wheelock School library. The evening began with SBC Committee Member Anna Mae O'Shea Brooke welcoming the community, following which Superintendent Jeff Marsden provided a brief overview of the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) process. Marsden then turned the discussion over to Steve Grenham, Dale Street School Principal, and Mary Bruhl, Director of Student Services, who made presentations emphasizing the distinct educational benefits of both the proposed new school building and of the Wheelock campus location. According to Grenham and Bruhl, a new school, co-located on the Wheelock School campus, would allow for synergies in programming opportunities between schools as well as increased communication and collaboration. There would be seamless sharing of staff, resources, facilities, and supplies between grades two through five. They also stressed that co-located schools on the Wheelock campus would help ease challenging transitions for Medfield's younger students. The two schools could share state-of-the-art occupational and physical therapy equipment, and for the first time ever, the fourth and fifth grade students would have access to outdoor classrooms, a walking trail, and the Victory Garden. Tina Soo Hoo from the architectural firm Arrowstreet shared the most recent architectural renderings of the school and highlighted some of the key features inside the building. She showed drawings of the building's exterior from different vantage points: the learning stairs, the band room, the library media center, the cafetorium, and lunch breakout spaces. Soo Hoo also spoke about the proposed school's net zero plan and the clean materials that will be used. She wrapped up her presentation by reviewing the next steps in the design process. Throughout the meeting the SBC took questions from residents and addressed other topics such cost planning – including information about the MSBA reimbursement – currently estimated to be approximately $18 million. The next steps for the building planning process were discussed as the SBC prepares to present the final project to the community for a town wide vote on this proposed school in the Fall. "I'd like to thank everyone who came out to learn about the proposed elementary school," said O'Shea Brooke. "The next meeting will be on Aug. 18th where the SBC is charged with setting the budget by vote. They will then have a public forum specifically on the project cost, where they will explain their decisions to the community and allow for questions. Budget discussions have been underway for a year-and-a-half, and as always, public comment will be permitted before the budget vote. The next Community Conversation will be held on August 25. A special public forum dedicated to the project will be scheduled for the early Fall. We hope residents will tune in to all these presentations and see for themselves the benefits this new school could provide to our young learners and dedicated educators." Throughout the summer and fall months the SBC intends to continue holding monthly updates regarding the proposed new school. Questions for the SBC may be submitted to: [email protected], and for more information on the Medfield Elementary School Project, please visit:tinyurl.com/mednewschool. Those interested in receiving future school project updates may enter their email addresses at the bottom of the home page.