Schools
District speaks too soon in plan to move sixth-graders
Colonial Hills parents upset they weren't told about move, concerned about effect on students
By PAMELA WILLIS
Published: Thursday, April 17, 2008 2:09 PM EDT
What seemed like a brilliant idea at the time -- to move Colonial Hills Elementary School sixth-graders to Kilbourne Middle School in the fall -- left Worthington administrators backtracking and publicly apologizing to parents.

Assistant Superintendent Paul Cynkar and Director of Elementary Education Mark Glasbrenner both prepared statements of apology for the Worthington school board meeting Monday, April 14.

"We got caught up in the excitement of the possibilities and positive impact of educational opportunities for all students at Colonial Hills," Glasbrenner said. "This excitement carried over into us looking at this being a very logical plan. We did lose sight of the emotional aspect for parents."

That "emotional aspect" included a number of parents becoming incensed that fifth-graders were told about the plan before they were, Glasbrenner said.

Board member Marc Schare wasn't happy with the breakdown in communication.

"The way this was handled was insensitive to parents," he said. "Something as radical as a sixth-grade realignment was seen as not important enough to run by the community? We can't spring surprises on an unsuspecting community, or on a board."

"As well-intentioned as we meant it to be, by including students as stakeholders in this process, there should not have been discussion with them prior to parents," Glasbrenner said. "This was a mistake that is not typical for us. However, it was a mistake, and all of us are sorry for this action."

Cynkar said the proposal to move Colonial Hills' 43 fifth-graders to Kilbourne Middle School to form the only sixth-grade class present in a Worthington middle school came up in an administrators' meeting last week.

Administrators were trying to address space issues, because Colonial Hills will be short at least two classrooms next fall.

"We have three kindergarten classes that need to go into three first grades at Colonial Hills, but we are short a classroom," Glasbrenner said. "We also need additional space for one of our intervention support programs."

Cynkar said the fifth-grade students learned of the plan after a band concert Thursday, April 10, when a middle school administrator who attended the concert talked about it to a large group of students.

"We sent a letter out the next day explaining the plan to parents, but they were concerned about our process and the outcome of moving the sixth-graders," Cynkar said.

Elementary enrollment is going up, while middle school enrollment is declining, Cynkar said.

Last fall, 188 students were added to the elementary roster and the kindergarten class was at 713 students -- the largest since 1998, Cynkar said.

Glasbrenner said the move was not only intended to create needed space, but to give the sixth-graders more instructional opportunities.

"Students currently in pull-out programs at Colonial Hills would no longer miss instructional time in specific content areas," Glasbrenner said. "Transitions math would be part of the students' schedule; gifted services language arts would be taught by a middle school teacher with gifted services endorsement; and band and strings would be part of the students' schedule."

Cynkar said the urgency of making the logistical decisions for such a change "led us to a process that minimized engagement and inspired a strong and emotional response from members of the Colonial Hills community."

Parent Terri Stimpert said parents are worried.

"We are concerned about the logistics and the social ramifications of putting 40 sixth-graders into a building with 300 seventh- and eighth-graders," she said. "We are not opposed to change, but I think we need to look at the best interest of the students."

"In the rush to deal with logistics, a lot of things went by the wayside," said parent Russ Carnahan. "There is value in having these kids complete their elementary careers in the school they started."

A meeting with Colonial Hills parents and administrators to discuss the issue further will take place at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 16, at Colonial Hills Elementary School, 5800 Greenwich St.

"Haste makes waste," Cynkar said. "This is very clear to us now. It is something we regret."

"We are concerned about the

logistics and the social ramifications of putting 40 sixth-graders into a building with 300 seventh- and eighth-graders."

--Terri Stimpert




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