NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Superintendent Barbara Malkas answered questions and corrected misinformation in a community forum regarding the closing of Greylock Elementary School.

 

Malkas took the first half hour of the forum Wednesday to present some facts about the budget and financial realities moving the district toward closing Greylock.

 

"I want to start by saying no superintendent, no school committee members, nobody wants to be in this position," she said in Brayton Elementary's Welcome Center. "This is not something we elect to do, it is something we have to do because we need to be financially responsible to our community."

 

Malkas said the district was facing this same $2.4 million budget shortfall in fiscal 2020, and she had planned on discussing closing Greylock School then. However, this necessity was put on hold once the pandemic struck and the schools were closed.

 

But in the fiscal year 2025 budget cycle, the federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds used during the pandemic is no longer available leaving the full local contribution with the city.

 

"The ending of ESSER was referred to in the press as a fiscal cliff. Coupling that with our other financial liabilities, I can tell you that I feel like I have been standing at the precipice of a cliff for months," she said.

 

She said the increases are driven by the usual items including contractual obligations and an increase in high-needs students. And with a declining student population, these funds are harder to recoup through enrollment-based state funding.

 

Closing Greylock will save nearly $1.2 million. Limping it along further will be even more costly.

 

"That school has inherent deficiencies, mostly due to its age. It has been lovingly cared for by the community and school department for many years, and it has served the community well, but it is time for that building to become anew," Malkas said. 

 

Closing the school fast tracks consolidation efforts as the district plans to eventually close Brayton Elementary after a proposed new $60 million Greylock School is built.

 

With the closure and building project, the district plans to adopt a new grade-span configuration. So instead of having the same grade levels spread throughout the city in different schools, all students within the same grade will stay together as they move through grades and schools as a cohort.

 

After the presentation, Malkas and her team fielded questions but spent much of the time setting the record straight. Some attendees confused the end of COVID-19 assistance funds was actual district debt coming to light. Others had not heard the city was pursuing the rebuild of Greylock Elementary School, in the works since 2019.

 

She reiterated that the numbers work and that the other schools can easily absorb the influx of students. She added that class sizes should not change and will remain lower than the state average.

 

Mayor Jennifer Macksey answered questions about funding, immediately quashing a rumor on social media that the city has already passed a Proposition 2 1/2 override to fund a new school project.

 

She clarified that although an override vote could be on the table, the city and School Building Committee are not currently at that point in the MSBA process.

 

"We aren't even there yet. Our construction costs and all of that are still being estimated and built out," she said. "We are just starting that financial piece. Regardless, the community will have to vote on whether they want a new school or not."

 

She added that although she does not want to close a school, it sets North Adams up for a stronger future. Noting the MSBA applauded the city for taking pause on their plan to renovate Brayton and take another look at Greylock considering the grade-span model.

 

"I don't want to close a school, but it would be irresponsible if we did not take these steps," she said. "... This grade span will really help us financially plus we can't keep fixing or not fixing the situation at Greylock."

 

Attendees were less worried about footing the bill but more concerned about convincing the majority of residents to support the project. Many attendees called back to Clarkburg's failed MSBA project.

 

Malkas said the financial aspect is a months-long process. She said not only will they have to determine final costs and how to allocate the local share but also mount a campaign to convince residents that the project is worthwhile and a benefit to the city.

 

The superintendent touched on some proposed reductions specifically among teaching assistants. She said using grants and available funds, the district was able to pull a few of the ESSER-funded positions into the budget. She said through attrition, layoffs should be minimal. She hoped to only have to release less than 5 percent of reduction of workforce notices.

 

When asked about central office positions that could be cut, she said most of the positions are state-mandated and others are grant-funded, meaning elimination would not help balance the budget at all.

 

She said summer programming will be moved from Brayton to Greylock to help accommodate the move.

 

As for Brayton's future, Malkas said no decisions have been made but the building should remain an educational asset. She said options that have been discussed include moving the central office to the school, expanding the Head Start program, creating an adult education program in the building, and working with Berkshire Community College to offer classes locally.

 

There were questions if Brayton could handle potentially more disabled students, especially during an evacuation. Malkas said equipment and staff needed to support student movement will travel with students from Greylock. 

 

Malkas did not have immediate answers for some of the more logistical questions including how students would be grouped once the schools combine. Malkas said much of this work would take place once teachers receive their placements, probably on May 1. She said students will be balanced and placing students will be less about keeping kids from Greylock together and more about creating inclusive and diverse groups of students.

 

There were also questions about start and end day times as well as busing but Malkas noted these answers are tied to final enrollment numbers and contractual negotiations. She said she would have clearer answers come this summer.

 

Malkas also did not have specifics on teaching assistant's layout and departmentalization within the school although it is something they plan to explore.

 

At the end of the hour-and-a-half-long meeting, there were many voices in support of the project, especially the new grade-span model. Parents felt their children would have more resources and saw the benefits of a core group of students sticking together through their entire school career in the North Adams Public Schools.