The district will see a steep increase in the number of kids in New Canaan’s elementary schools this coming year, preliminary data show, prompting concerns from some education officials about average class sizes.
Projections call for 1,674 elementary-level students in New Canaan Public Schools. Though that figure may be higher than the number of kids who actually show up next Wednesday for the first day of school, it represents a net increase of 72 kids over the last academic year.
District officials said during Monday night’s Board of Education meeting that East, South and West schools plan to absorb the additional students with a net increase of just one more class/section. (Tables with average classroom size projections for each school are interspersed throughout this article.)
School board Secretary Dionna Carlson said she’s concerned that six out of the 15 grades (kindergarten through fourth, in each of the three elementary schools) are either at or slightly above class size guidelines.
“I think that we need to be mindful of pointing that out, especially as we approach budget season, because these numbers have been disconcerting to me for a few years and I think we need to really take a good look at what is happening at our elementary school enrollment and class sizes,” Carlson said at the meeting, held in the Wagner Room at New Canaan High School.
East School: Class Size Projections, 2014-15
| Grade | Total | Sections 2013-14 | Sections 2014-15 | Average Class Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 567 | 27 | 29 | |
| K | 108 | 4 | 6 | 18.0 |
| 1 | 90 | 6 | 5 | 18.0 |
| 2 | 129 | 6 | 6 | 21.5 |
| 3 | 117 | 6 | 6 | 19.5 |
| 4 | 123 | 6 | 6 | 20.5 |
* K-3: 16 to 20 pupils
* 4-8: 20 to 24 pupils
* 9-12: 14 to 25 pupils
(Source: New Canaan Public Schools)
A net gain of 72 students also would be more than seven times what had been projected by the New England School Development Council or “NESDEC.” According to its website, the Marlborough, Mass.-based nonprofit organization strives to help its affiliate districts plan (in Connecticut, affiliates include New Canaan as well as Darien, Fairfield, Weston and Westport).
Saxe Middle School is expecting to see 18 fewer kids in grades five through eight compared to last academic year, while the high school will see 10 more. Average class size figures for Saxe and NCHS were not available or discussed at the Board of Education meeting.
Part of what’s happening at the elementary school level—and it’s driving additional staffing of paraprofessionals, bucking a district goal and trend in recent years—is that more special education kids are coming to New Canaan Public Schools from other towns.
To meet those children’s needs, according to Gary Kass, the district’s director of human resources, the school plans to carry additional educators: the equivalent of about 1.1 full-time employees (that includes part-time positions in occupational therapy, physical therapy and special education teacher) as well as six teaching assistants.
South School: Class Size Projections, 2014-15
| Grade | Total | Sections 2013-14 | Sections 2014-15 | Average Class Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 547 | 28 | 27 | |
| K | 91 | 6 | 5 | 18.2 |
| 1 | 110 | 5 | 6 | 18.3 |
| 2 | 105 | 6 | 5 | 21.0 |
| 3 | 122 | 6 | 6 | 20.3 |
| 4 | 119 | 5 | 5 | 23.8 |
* K-3: 16 to 20 pupils
* 4-8: 20 to 24 pupils
* 9-12: 14 to 25 pupils
(Source: New Canaan Public Schools)
Assistant Superintendent of Pupil and Family Services Darlene Pianka said 14 students are coming into the elementary schools that were “totally unanticipated,” including many that are special ed.
“These are students that were completely not on our radar who moved in from other towns,” Pianka said.
Six of those students will attend South School, she said, and four of the 14 “are coming with an [Individualized Education Program] document from another town or state that dictates that they need a 1-on-1 paraprofessional, so that is an obligation that we have to meet by law.”
It isn’t clear just why the number of special ed kids in New Canaan is rising, or whether what the town is seeing is different from other Fairfield County communities.
Board Vice Chair Scott Gress, who ran the meeting in the absence of Chair Hazel Hobbs, observed that the district appears “to be adding special education students at a substantial rate.”
“Is that being experienced by other towns or are we attractive to families who have children with special needs?” Gress asked.
West School: Class Size Projections, 2014-15
| Grade | Total | Sections 2013-14 | Sections 2014-15 | Average Class Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 518 | 26 | 26 | |
| K | 111 | 5 | 6 | 18.5 |
| 1 | 89 | 6 | 6 | 17.8 |
| 2 | 123 | 4 | 6 | 20.5 |
| 3 | 81 | 6 | 4 | 20.3 |
| 4 | 114 | 5 | 5 | 22.8 |
* K-3: 16 to 20 pupils
* 4-8: 20 to 24 pupils
* 9-12: 14 to 25 pupils
(Source: New Canaan Public Schools)
Pianka said she would look further into it, and noted that it appears New Canaan Public Schools have a strong reputation in the community.
“Generally they’re very happy with the service they receive, and I don’t know the decisions that families are making now as opposed to the recent past about which community or area they want to move into,” she said.
Kass said he’s aware of other area districts where enrollment this year is projecting to go down, not up.
Interim Superintendent of Schools Dr. Bryan Luizzi said that the district manages its staffing levels very closely and has been creative about problem-solving. He urged the board to wait for October’s full staffing report and said that New Canaan’s elementary school principals meet at least weekly in the summer and monitor enrollment levels.
“We are trying to be responsible with the resources that we have,” Luizzi said.
Kass said a committee is convening soon to look at enrollment data more closely.
Meanwhile, it isn’t clear why the NESDEC projections are so far off.
Board member Penny Rashin said the organization takes data about births among New Canaan families and uses a multiplier to determine grade school levels.
“They are clearly not using a big enough multiplier for this year,” she said.
Luizzi and Gress suggested that the committee that will study enrollment takes a hard look at the equation.