Proposal

Our Schools: From Past to Present to Future

North Caldwell’s Board of Education has had capital improvement on its radar since at least 2017, spurred by higher enrollment and educational evolutions. While the demands of the pandemic and a shifting forecast for housing developments delayed action, the district sought creative solutions for space and programming. The present points toward the future: more students, different teaching models and older buildings. The culmination of those calls for the Sept. 26 bond referendum that could help finance this $51 million investment in our schools.

Higher Enrollment Requires More Classrooms

Grandview and Gould Schools were designed to serve a total of 585 students. Enrollment has been gradually rising and by October 2022 it surpassed 710 students. An independent demographic study projected the rise would continue even without the new housing developments planned for North Caldwell. This growth, as well as more families moving to the community, are signs of North Caldwell’s attractiveness and they mean our schools need more space.

>>> Proposal: Create more general classrooms through renovations and add square footage to both schools, and design those flexibly for 21st century creative collaboration. Add new Multi-Purpose Rooms with appropriately sized gyms and stages.

Modern Education Uses More Specialty Space

Across the globe, the ways schools use space has significantly changed. In North Caldwell. Only high schools set aside space for STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics). Students with learning challenges used to be separated from their peers, and now small-group instruction helps them keep up. One example of our space crunch is at Grandview, where physical education classes happen in a hallway due to lack of gym space.

>>> Proposal: Plan new instructional space to accommodate small groups and individualized services. At Gould, dedicate a room for the set-up and supplies that support STEAM. At Grandview, create a new playground sized and outfitted for pre-K students. Establish World Language classrooms at each school to help solidify the foundation for advanced learning.

Strategic Design Would Improve Safety and security at main & gym entrances

Students and staff members walk between Gould’s two buildings to access the Gymnasium, Media Center, art and technology classes. As a popular gathering place in North Caldwell, our schools’ gyms are often used by the public with steps taken to keep the rest of the buildings off-limits. Traffic at drop-off and pick-up times has presented safety challenges.

>>> Proposal: Fill the Gould Gap with some of the needed new classrooms to make the school whole. Further improve security by building a two-stage vestibule into this new face of the school fronting Gould Avenue; build a similar secure entrance at Grandview. Design the new Gym/Multi-Purpose Rooms for both schools – needed for space and available for community use – with separate entrances and the option of closing access to the buildings’ cores. Rethink traffic flow before repaving parking lots.

Maximize State Funding for Must-Do Maintenance

Like our homes, schools occasionally need upgrades to heating equipment, electrical systems, and roofing. Unlike those must-do maintenance costs for homes, state aid is available to offset these costs for public school districts. By moving those projects out of the annual operating budget and into a bond-funded plan, North Caldwell Public Schools would reap more than $10 million in state aid that its taxpayers are already paying for. Only districts with voter-approved bond votes get a share of that funding.

>>> Proposal: Upgrade old heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems and replace window units to increase cost efficiency, reduce repair bills and provide better air circulation and temperature control. Replace roofing that is beyond its expected lifespan. Upgrade the electrical and fire alarm systems at Gould; Grandview’s systems are up to date.

The Timeline Stretches to 2026

Referendum planning has been underway for more than four years. The vote on Sept. 26 roughly marks the halfway point toward a future-ready state of North Caldwell Public Schools.

>>> Proposal: If voters approve, some work will start in late 2024 and be ready to meet needs by the start of the 2026-27 school year. The property tax increase would appear on the tax bills residents receive in 2024.

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