Thursday February 14, 2013

ADAMS -- After a short stay at C.T. Plunkett Elementary School, the school district's preschool program is headed back to Cheshire.

The program resumed at Plunkett at the start of this school year, after the sixth grade went to the newly renovated Hoosac Valley Middle & High School, freeing up space -- in theory.

Instead, Superintendent Kristen Gordon said the space is again at a premium.

"We certainly have enjoyed having the pre-K students and staff here, but we don't have the space at Plunkett," Gordon said. "We had to put the music room on the [auditorium] stage -- not an appropriate place for the music room."

The preschoolers were moved back to Plunkett because over 90 percent of students are from Adams. They were situated at Plunkett before 2009, when the building project at Hoosac Valley made things a squeeze downtown and officials decided to move these students, typically numbering somewhere in the 50s, and their teachers to Cheshire.

Space needs for music, special education, occupational therapy and physical therapy were cited as the reason for the evident cram.

The School Committee approved the move back to Cheshire unanimously at a meeting this week. It's likely to be indefinite, as Gordon said she "[doesn't] want to revisit this every year."

The district is only obligated to provide transportation for the program's special needs students, so Adams parents of "typical" students will again

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assume responsibility for getting their child to and from class. Last year, the program included 18 "typical" students from Adams and 12 from Cheshire.

The School Committee also filled a gap on its roster this week, voting to seat candidate Brian Astorino as a new Cheshire representative on the board.

Astorino has children in the district and years of experience on various district subcommittees and councils, according to the other committee members.

The holder of that seat on the committee is also up for election on this year's Adams and Cheshire ballots.

"[Astorino] is going to have to quickly get papers and run," committee Chairman Paul Butler said.

In other business at this week's meeting, business administrator David Hinkell reported that the district will be putting out to bid its first bond to pay for the Hoosac renovation project. He said the district is likely to receive an A1 rating from Moody's, "about as good as you can get for a school district."

To reach Phil Demers, email
pdemers@thetranscript.com.