IN THE NEWS: From today's Erie Times-News...

Survey: Businesses support Erie schools plan
The members of the Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership believe Erie schools are in need of renovation or reconstruction, and that there is both an ethical and economic argument to do the work.

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 * CLARIFICATION

Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy and Central Tech would remain distinct and separate schools in ALL options. These two schools are NOT being "merged" or "consolidated" in any plan.

There would be no sharing of student learning spaces or facilities — both schools would remain completely separate (with completely separate facilities, learning spaces, administrations, identities, etc.) but located together on the same site from West 32nd to West 34 and Cherry to Walnut and Chestnut Streets.

Collegiate Academy would continue to be the region's leading college preparatory program.

Central Tech would accommodate additional students in both AM and PM career and technical programming.

IN THE NEWS: From today's Erie Times-News...

Our View: Wanted: Partners for Erie school project
The Erie School District has crafted a plan to renovate schools so that city of Erie children can be educated in the types of facilities that parents, students, teachers and taxpayers elsewhere take for granted. Students need buildings that are structurally safe and designed to accommodate today's curriculum, with the ability to adapt to future educational needs.

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Reminder: Community survey now available
Thank you for your interest in making Erie's Public Schools the best they can be. We truly value your feedback and invite you to share your thoughts here.

IN THE NEWS: From today's Erie Times-News...

Our View: Why Erie must fix its schools
The Erie School District's plan to modernize school buildings in the city of Erie is ambitious, costly -- and necessary. If Erie's public schools continue to decay, we'll all pay the price, in lost opportunities for generations of children and in lost potential to rebuild Erie's economy.

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Reminder: Community survey available
Thank you for your interest in making Erie's Public Schools the best they can be. We truly value your feedback and invite you to share your thoughts here.

IN THE NEWS: From today's Erie Times-News...

Erie district to focus on vocational training
Melanie Baker sat in front of a computer screen, typing directions into a software program that would tell the huge machine next to her how to slice through metal.

After a minute, bright orange sparks flew as the plasma cutter cut the sheet of metal into a series of rectangles.

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IN THE NEWS: From today's Erie Times-News...

Pat Howard: Badams pushes for change in the face of long odds
For a long time Erie's public school system has been organized around the circumstances and dictates of the past -- yesterday's city, yesterday's population, yesterday's enrollment and yesterday's needs.

One result of that, to a degree that defeats fairness, is that where you live in the city has determined how well your children's school is equipped to meet today's challenges. Those are the breaks.

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Community survey now available
Thank you for your interest in making Erie's Public Schools the best they can be. We truly value your feedback and invite you to share your thoughts here.

IN THE NEWS: From today's Erie Times-News...

Erie School District considers restructuring plans
Multiple school closures.

Program changes.

Hundreds of millions of dollars in renovations and construction.

The scope of proposed restructuring plans for the Erie School District is larger than any other transformation the district has gone through in recent memory, both in dollars and in the sheer square footage of the buildings involved.'

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Video of October 7 optimization plan town hall meeting available

Click below to video in HD (embedded) or click here to view it on YouTube*.



* Note: Depending on school-level content filtering, YouTube may not be accessible within the district.

IN THE NEWS: From today's Erie Times-News...

Officials present plan for radical school changes
A three-year planning process has culminated in three multimillion-dollar plans that would radically restructure the Erie School District -- if the district can secure the funding.

Each option includes multiple school closures and the replacement of full-day career and technical education with two half-day sessions, potentially doubling the number of students who could participate.

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Community learns options for district's long-term strategic facilities plan
The Erie community tonight learned details on the three remaining district optimization plan options during a presentation by Vern McKissick of McKissick Associates, a Harrisburg-based architecture and educational planning firm, during a town hall meeting at East High School.

The three remaining options, narrowed down from an original list of more than 25, is the result of more than two years of studying the district's buildings, enrollment, population shifts, demographics and educational programming and outlines options for what the district could and should look like in the next 20-30 years. Various community groups and the district's Financial, Academic, and Community Advisory councils helped narrow the list of options down to the remaining three based on cost, execution, student impact, flexibility, sustainability, improved community access and historic building preservation factors over the last 18 months.

To access the October 7 presentation, please click here (2.27 MB PDF file).


Options: Building-Level Detail
To renovation options with building-level detail, please click below:

• Central Tech (CTC & Collegiate Academy)
• Central Tech (CTC Only)
• Cleveland (K-8)
• Connell (K-8)
• Diehl (K-8)
• East (9-12)
• East (K-8)
• Edison (K-8)
• Harding (K-8)
• Jefferson (K-8)
• Lincoln (6-8)
• McKinley (K-5)
• McKinley (K-8)
• New Irving (K-8)
• Northwest PA Collegiate (9-12)
• Northwest PA Collegiate Building (K-8)
• Perry (K-8)
• Strong Vincent (9-12)

Options: High Resolution K-8 Attendance Area Maps
K-8 attendance area maps for each option in high resolution PDF:

• Option A (22.4 MB PDF)
• Option B (16.0 MB PDF)
• Option C (15.50 MB PDF)

Community Survey
Click here to access a community survey about the options presented here.


Watch the October 7 Town Hall (HD)

IN THE NEWS: From today's Erie Times-News...

Our View: What's coming for Erie's public schools?
When the Erie School District unveils options for its long-range master plan on Monday at 6 p.m.*, we hope the auditorium at East High School, 1001 Atkins St., is packed.

Superintendent Jay Badams will lead the town-hall meeting, where Vern McKissick, an architect and planner with McKissick Associates in Harrisburg, will present scenarios for what the Erie School District "could and should look like in five, 10, 15 years," said Matthew Cummings, the district's communications director.

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 * CORRECTION

The print and GoErie.com version of this story incorrectly listed the time of the meeting. The presentation begins at 6 p.m.

IN THE NEWS: From today's Erie Times-News...

Residents to hear Erie schools plan
The picture of what the Erie School District could look like in the not-to-distant future is getting a little clearer.

Erie schools Superintendent Jay Badams will hold a town-hall style meeting on the district's facilities master plan on Oct. 7 at 6 p.m. at East High School, 1001 Atkins St.

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District to host strategic facilities master plan town hall meeting, Oct. 7

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Jay Badams will host a town hall meeting on the district's strategic facilities master plan on Monday, Oct. 7 at 6 p.m. at East High School.

Vern McKissick, architect and educational planner with McKissick Associates in Harrisburg, will present phase three results and recommendations from the district's long-term facilities master plan study. The data-driven recommendations will help the Board of School Directors and administration set a vision for the district's schools and structure over the next five to 10 years and provides a plan for district leaders to begin sharing with potential funders and partners.

The district's optimization planning process is designed to improve equity of school facilities within the district and parity with other school systems in western Pennsylvania.

"The quality of your child's classroom should not be dictated by your zip code," said Dr. Badams. "Erie students deserve high quality learning environments that are up to the educational specifications of today, not those of more than 85 years ago."

The Oct. 7 community presentation will include enrollment projections, possible implementation timelines and three options to better optimize the district's facilities through the year 2022. After an overview of the planning process and study findings, town hall participants will break into small facilitated groups to share feedback and suggestions on the options.

"I hope everyone interested in the future of public education in the city will attend this town hall meeting," Dr. Badams said.

IN THE NEWS: From today's Erie Times-News...

Erie School District earns A+ for transparency
The Erie School District is making the grade when it comes to transparency.

The Sunshine Review, a national nonprofit pro-transparency organization based in Alexandria, Va., gave the district an "A+" and a Sunny Award for enhancing its website and increasing access to information.

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IN THE NEWS: From today's Erie Times-News...

Board receives update on long-term strategic facilities plan
... Also Wednesday, the board met with Mike Laipple, president of the Buffalo-based project management firm LPCiminelli.

Laipple said the district is progressing with its long-term strategic facilities plan, and should have a final product done in the summer.

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