Posted on: February 5, 2018
About 75 people attended a community forum to discuss options for Oak Grove students during the construction of the new Oak Grove Elementary School in 2018-19. The students will need to move off-site for one year while the new building is constructed.
The meeting, held at North Albany Middle School, was an opportunity to discuss the three options on the table and take input and answer questions from parents.
“We want to put kids first and put them at the heart of our decisions,” said Assistant Superintendent Tonja Everest.
This was the second parent forum. Input will be compiled with input from a survey that is available online or as a hard copy in school offices. The survey closes on Feb. 11.
Responda la encuesta: Abierto hasta el 11 de febrero
Parents shared concerns, suggestions and questions. Input included questions about busing; combining the elementary students with middle school students in one building; availability of school-based childcare; bell times, class sizes, staff consistency; and non-core enrichment programs.
Many parents also raised concerns about school climate and behavioral issues at North Albany Middle School. Superintendent Jim Golden said that he has identified areas for improvement and is working on implementing new programs in classrooms, school-wide and district-wide.
“We all want to make the culture improve,” he said. “You have the commitment of the school and district administration and the board.”
The new Anti-Bullying, Anti-Harassment Task Force is part of the effort to focus on solutions to improve school climate. It will hold a second meeting on Feb. 7 at Albany Options School.
