A Key Communicator report from Superintendent Johns:

Tonight the Board will entertain a motion to close the Wetzel Road School effective at the end of June 2010. That motion will be followed by a motion to slow down the implementation of the LHS academies until the fall of 2011. I have had a conversation with President Mouton about this second motion and she, the rest of the Board and I would like to be clear on what that motion does and doesn’t do. The Board believes the work of the LHS Task Force on Academies is extremely important and that it should not be done in a hurried fashion.

The original plan that I had advanced to the Board and the Long Range Facility Planning Team called for all new site plans to be implemented no sooner than the fall of 2011. It was only after the presentation of the Governor’s Budget Proposal and the loss of million of dollars of State revenue to LCSD that the closure of an elementary building moved up to become a budgetary consideration for this coming fall. The Board, with the aforementioned motions, is splitting the elementary building closure and the implementation of LHS academies into two distinct timeframes.

The closure issue is on an accelerated path (because of its budget implications for next year) and restructuring of the LHS will now be back on the original track. With the enormity of work that is yet to be done before we can consider the implementation of academies and the adjustments that will necessarily be required in response to cost cutting measures inherent in next year’s budget, the Board and I are both sensing a work load that may result in the academy roll-out, if done next fall, being something less than our best. The Board and I want you all to know how important the work of the Task Force is and that this slow down is, in no way, a sign of flagging interest or support. [Emphasis ours.] We appreciate the enthusiasm with which the Task Force has taken on this assignment and hope that this modification in pace will only emphasize the value that we put into the final outcome.

Sincerely, Richard N. Johns, Superintendent

Note: The “original track” Superintendent Johns refers to is the delayed timeframe for Academy implementation. The Board had intended to introduce the concept a full year later, but abandoned this plan after the State released its dire financial forecast.

The Lifeguard will continue reporting on the restructuring process as tonight’s Board meeting unfolds and as critical sources become available.