2 — Wednesday, March 4, 2020 — North Pointe
NEWS
"Save Our Schools" group advocates for preserving district structure
FARRAH FASSE
FARRAH FASSE
COMMUNITY CONCERN| Lauren Nowicki, a concerned parent and the founder of the "Save Our Schools" initiative, YOUTH ADVOCACY| Several students attended the rally; junior Cordy Wettstein felt strongly about expressed her concern at a rally, photographed above, outside the Board of Education meeting at Brownell Middle School. the lack of communication given to parents about the topic. "Relatively little information has been "My biggest concern is just that there's no benefit to doing this, this whole reconfiguration," Nowicki said. given to parents of whom this will affect, which is problematic," Wettstein said.
On Feb. 10, Grosse Pointe Public Schools held one of its biweekly board meetings at Brownell Middle School. Outside the entrance, a group called “Save Our Schools” protested the impact district reconfiguration will have on special education programming. Founder Lauren Nowicki said "Save Our Schools" formed several months ago, before the board vote occurred. Since then, the group has expressed concern over reconfiguration regarding the impact on special education, the financial benefit and the movement of fifth grade to middle school. “All of us, at one time or another, have written letters and/or met with both board members and administration,” Nowicki said. “Those have gotten us not very far, so we proceeded to start protesting at the board meetings because even after contacting them through various facets they still are not responding to us or not even open to listening to our ideas or answering our questions.” One major grievance expressed by "Save Our Schools" is that most of the special education programs will be housed in schools on the North end of the district. However, the group believes that programs should be spread evenly among schools. Nowicki is also worried about the effects that moving schools will have on students with intellectual disabilities. “The closest (program) to us will be housed either at Richard or Kirby, so that's quite a ways away, and for those kids this transition is already going to be hard. To then take them to a whole new school with none (some) of their peers is going to be extremely traumatic for them,” Nowicki said. “(It will be) far more traumatic than (for) any of our (regular education students) that are moving from one school to another, but they are moving at least with their friends.” Grosse Pointe Public Schools Director of Student Services,
Stefanie Hayes, is overseeing many of the changes made to special education programs during the reconfiguration process. Hayes said that there will not be reductions in the types of programs offered, such as Cognitive Impairment and Autism Spectrum Disorder classrooms. Rather, the locations of the
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For these kids to transition is already going to be hard. To then take them to a whole new school with none of their peers is going to be extremely traumatic. Lauren Nowicki FOUNDER OF "SAVE OUR SCHOOLS"
intellectually disabled children from their home schools, as Hayes claims there is no guarantee that those students will attend the school located closest to their home. This is due to the district’s special education programs funding through Wayne County Regional Educational Service Agencies. Hayes argues this funding is the basis for students not being promised attendance to their closest school, as several elements— aside from their residence—factor into students’ school placement. “(Special education) isn't a Grosse Pointe program to start with. We do try to have kids that are Grosse Pointe residents considered for their own school or the closest school possible, but it isn't necessarily a guarantee as we always have students that are also referred from Grosse Pointe, Harper Woods and Hamtramck,” Hayes said. “...We do have to look at the numbers (and) the locations. And also, there are many variables to consider ... what grade kids are, what grade levels, what functioning levels, where their transportation will occur and how long of a ride.” As "Save Our Schools" concerns about reconfiguration stretch farther than just special education, they are continuing to protest outside before the start of board meetings. Their next protest is on March 9 regarding school closure savings. Asserting that reconfiguration should not be happening in the first place, Nowicki is concerned that the changes being made are regressive for the district. She believes that reconfiguration should be looked at as an opportunity to improve the district, not save money. “I think (in terms of reconfiguration) we should stop the current plan, and take a step back and look at what is needed in the district, and not only what is needed. But (we should also look at) what we could do to make our districts better,” Nowicki said. “This current plan is not improving us at all. What it is (doing) is just shrinking us, and allowing us no room for growth. With a plan that is perhaps more innovative and more cutting edge, offering some programs to kids (that are) more 21st century rather than old school.”
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By Farrah Fasse & Abi Murray PAGE EDITORS
programs will be shifted to other schools, but they will retain the same number of classrooms throughout the district during the 201920 and 2020-21 school years. Although junior Corrydon Wettstein understands the concerns that special education may be disrupted by the transition, he sees it as a necessary one, believing that the children will experience a learning curve and adjust accordingly. “I think that it may not be distributed evenly, but I’m grateful there are still the same amount of classes,” Wettstein said. “The longer drive by 10 minutes is surely worth the same quality of education.” "Save Our Schools" largely protests the displacement of
