School board adopts 10-year strategic plan for schools

Jan. 26—SOUTH WINDSOR — The Board of Education Tuesday unanimously approved Superintendent Kate Carter's proposed strategic plan for town schools for 2023-26, which includes completing the 10-year Elementary Facilities Plan adopted in 2013 and responding to the district's rapid rate of enrollment.

Carter said the plan is based on input from teachers, staff, students, parents, administration and school board members.

"This document represents a great deal of work on the part of many," Carter said.

The initiatives in the plan are grouped into five categories: learning experience; student achievement; talent management; wellness; and student and family experience.

Completion of the elementary facilities plan, initially adopted in October 2013, falls under the learning experience category.

Specifically, the goals are to open the new $58.5 million Pleasant Valley Elementary School in August — the last of the town's elementary schools to be rebuilt — relocate students and staff and the preschool program to the new 591 Ellington Road site by the following June, and then demolish the old neighboring building.

The first phase of three elementary school builds was completed in August 2017 when the new Orchard Hill School officially opened. In 2020, Eli Terry and Philip R. Smith elementary schools were also completed and reopened.

Construction of Pleasant Valley was approved in a March 2020 referendum.

Another goal to enhance the district's learning experience is to respond to the impact increased enrollment has had on school facilities.

From 2012 to 2022, South Windsor was the only town in the state to have over a 10% increase in enrollment, Carter's numbers show. By 2032, the district is expected to have 748 more students.

The abnormal rate of new students has already caused the district to find new ways to increase space.

In October the Planning and Zoning Commission approved the addition of a whole classroom to the site plan for the new Pleasant Valley School now under construction. The PZC also voted in favor of adding two portable classrooms to the Philip R. Smith School in late November.

The goals for the next three years are to transform that former Wapping School building into an annex for the high school, expand the Timothy Edwards Middle School cafeteria, install the Philip R. Smith portable classrooms, and find a location for the South Windsor Transition Program.

Additionally Carter proposed relocating the Social, Academic, Inclusion and Life Skills (SAILS) program to Pleasant Valley.

"It's hard to believe that there's room or energy in here for anything beyond the 10-year plan, but it's really great to see all these really exciting things," Board of Education Secretary Beth Esstman said.

Other goals outlined in the plan include attracting a more diverse staff, increasing the quality and quantity of the athletic fields, adding staff and resources for mental health services and expanding the use of project-based learning.

"I look forward to working closely with the Board of Education over the next three years to achieve the goals outlined in this document," Carter said of the plan.

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