Parents Express Concern for Proposed Elementary School Closings
By: Jennifer Lee
Updated: July 18, 2012
WASHINGTON COUNTY, MD - School board members listened to parents and community members who don't want to see Conococheague and Winter Street Elementary Schools close.
"They're concerned about their kids safety and that's one of the major responsibilities of the Board," says Amanda Krehbiel, Student Member of the Board of Education. "So that's understandable, they're not going to have the same environment at a different school."
The proposed location for the new school is in the Hagers Crossing development behind Walmart. If all goes to plan, students will attend the new school in 2016.
"This new school would allow us to eliminate long term maintenance costs for both of those schools," says Board Member Justin Hartings. "So there's clearly going to be a savings there in terms of operational."
The county says Conococheague and Winter Street will need extensive repairs to continue serving as an educational facility.
"It would allow the students who go to Conococheague to drink out of a water fountain, frankly, because right now they have to have water brought in bottles," says Hartings. "They can't drink by the water fountain that's fed by the well at Conococheague, so there are a lot obvious benefits."
However, some say those benefits far outweigh what these small community schools offer, like knowing each and every classmate.
Another School Board Member, Karen Harshman, says, "I appreciate the smaller schools located in the neighborhoods with the support of the parents, as opposed to a large one where the students feel distant from each other because there are so many of them."
"A case can be made for renovating or rebuilding Winter Street and keeping that as a community school, a truly community-centered school," says Melissa Williams. "I think it could do a lot to revitalize that end of Hagerstown."
The Washington County School Board is accepting further feedback through email before they vote on the proposed closing August 7th.
"They're concerned about their kids safety and that's one of the major responsibilities of the Board," says Amanda Krehbiel, Student Member of the Board of Education. "So that's understandable, they're not going to have the same environment at a different school."
The proposed location for the new school is in the Hagers Crossing development behind Walmart. If all goes to plan, students will attend the new school in 2016.
"This new school would allow us to eliminate long term maintenance costs for both of those schools," says Board Member Justin Hartings. "So there's clearly going to be a savings there in terms of operational."
The county says Conococheague and Winter Street will need extensive repairs to continue serving as an educational facility.
"It would allow the students who go to Conococheague to drink out of a water fountain, frankly, because right now they have to have water brought in bottles," says Hartings. "They can't drink by the water fountain that's fed by the well at Conococheague, so there are a lot obvious benefits."
However, some say those benefits far outweigh what these small community schools offer, like knowing each and every classmate.
Another School Board Member, Karen Harshman, says, "I appreciate the smaller schools located in the neighborhoods with the support of the parents, as opposed to a large one where the students feel distant from each other because there are so many of them."
"A case can be made for renovating or rebuilding Winter Street and keeping that as a community school, a truly community-centered school," says Melissa Williams. "I think it could do a lot to revitalize that end of Hagerstown."
The Washington County School Board is accepting further feedback through email before they vote on the proposed closing August 7th.
