Talks on redrawing Greenfield schools’ district map resume

GREENFIELD — After more than a year on pause, the School Committee is reviving talks on redrawing the school district maps to ensure where a student goes to elementary school is more equitable.

“My goal as the chair of the (Ad Hoc Redrawing Committee) is to have a dialogue with the community, the parents and anybody who is interested in changes we might envision for the elementary schools,” School Committee member Jean Wall said on Wednesday.

The Greenfield School Department’s elementary school students attend one of the following schools: Newton, Green River (which is currently closed), Federal Street or The Discovery School at Four Corners.

The ad hoc committee began meeting in October 2020 with the goal of ensuring where a student goes to elementary school is more equitable, Wall previously explained. Its last meeting was posted for Feb. 11, 2021.

Wall’s update during the School Committee meeting on Wednesday follows the completion of a $17,000 study by the New England School Development Council (NESDEC), which outlined potential options for the “best use” of the district’s facilities.

Among those options were moving fifth grade to the elementary level, reconfiguring elementary schools to specific grade-span schools and moving eighth grade to the middle school; realigning elementary school enrollment boundaries to evenly distribute students across elementary schools; reopening Green River School on Meridian Street as a kindergarten through fifth grade school while moving fifth grade to the elementary level and eighth grade to the middle school; and expanding one or more elementary schools to ease crowding while moving fifth grade to the elementary school and eighth grade to the middle school.

Wall noted the previously discussed change to the middle school start time will also be part of the conversation.

On Wednesday, Wall said the process will begin with each of the School Committee members touring the school buildings they wish to see.

The Ad Hoc Redrawing Committee will then hold meetings with community members and various stakeholders, but not before meetings regarding the redistricting process take place with the district’s unions, School Committee Chair Amy Proietti noted. Wall said she doesn’t expect the community-wide meetings to start until school begins and they will hopefully be wrapped up by October.

“We’ll bring back what we find out at the various meetings to the School Committee, give them a report and then will task the superintendent with supplementing, or implementing, what we have come up with,” Wall said. “I think it will be an interesting conversation with the community.”

Reporter Mary Byrne can be reached at mbyrne@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Twitter: @MaryEByrne.