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CREATING SPACES FOR STUDENT SUCCESS
Voters APPROVE the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Public Schools bond referendum!
According to unofficial results, voters approved both questions in the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Public Schools bond referendum to acquire La Grande Building for more space and fund HVAC, electrical, and fire alarm upgrades across all SPF schools.
Tuesday night tallies showed 3,090 votes in favor and 2,402 opposed for Question 1; 2,968 votes in favor and 2,526 opposed for Question 2. Totals are expected to be updated over the next few days as other factors are accounted for, such as counting mail-in ballots that were postmarked by the election date and verifying provisional ballots.
The SPF administration and Board of Education appreciate every single voter who cast their ballot in this special election. These improvements will shape our schools and communities for years to come. Thank you for voting!
A scaled-back plan to improve learning spaces for students with $11.4 million in state aid
A scaled-back plan to improve learning spaces for students with $11.4 million in state aid
Scotch Plains-Fanwood Public Schools are built on a tradition of excellence and pride – it's what continues to attract people to our towns. Our schools, however, have become strained by increased enrollment.
This is the situation:
Space in the district is at a premium as new families move in, birthrates rise, and new development contributes to growth.
The district has no additional classroom space, as seen by a lack of dedicated space for non-classroom instruction such as instrumental music lessons and general music rooms.
Additional lunch periods are needed causing children to eat either early or late, impacting the daily schedule.
Small group instruction and other critical services take place in shared spaces with multiple lessons often taught at the same time.
Following the September referendum, the Board of Education and administration reviewed the election results and listened carefully to the community’s concerns. A citizen group provided further feedback – leading to a new plan that costs less, yet still secures La Grande, captures $11.4 million in state aid only available through a referendum, and includes HVAC and other upgrades that earned strong voter approval in September.
The Ballot: January 28, 2025
The Ballot: January 28, 2025
Acquire La Grande Building for space - $10.5 million
Acquire La Grande Building for space - $10.5 million
Voter approval of the first question means the district can:
Free up nine classrooms across the elementary schools and ease space constraints with the purchase of the La Grande Building and relocation of all pre-kindergarten classes to this building. The cost of minor renovations would be funded by the district’s Capital Reserve, which is an account earmarked for capital improvements that do not fit within the regular operating budget.
No expansion, complete renovation, or redistricting as part of this plan. Pre-kindergarten expansion would also not be possible at this point, as the district prioritizes maintaining class sizes and freeing up space for K-4.
HVAC upgrades that the community supported in the last referendum - $34.2 million
HVAC upgrades that the community supported in the last referendum - $34.2 million
Voter approval of the first question means the district can:
Make critical upgrades to HVAC, electrical, and fire alarm systems, as well as universal air conditioning across all schools.
Funding the La Grande Building into the future - $1.1 million annually
Funding the La Grande Building into the future - $1.1 million annually
The second question on the ballot would fund the annual costs of the La Grande Building for building and student support staff, including:
Administrator
Nurse
Secretaries
Custodial Staff
Security Officer
Buildings and Grounds Personnel
YOU ASKED. WE LISTENED.
Questions of the week
What projects are included in the January 28, 2025 proposal?
What projects are included in the January 28, 2025 proposal?
Voter approval of the first question means the district can:
Add air conditioning to all spaces that don’t currently have air conditioning in the district and provide other critical upgrades to HVAC, electrical, and fire alarm systems in all eight schools
Free up nine classrooms across the elementary schools and ease space constraints with the purchase of La Grande School and relocation of all pre-kindergarten classes to this building. Funds from the district’s Capital Reserve would cover costs of minor renovations to La Grande for this purpose.
An expansion and complete renovation, as well as redistricting, would be off the table for now. Pre-kindergarten expansion would also not be possible at this point, as the district needs to prioritize maintaining class sizes and freeing up space for K-4.
Voter approval of the second question means the district can:
Fund the annual costs for building and student support staff, including administrator, nurse, secretaries, custodial staff, security officer, buildings and grounds personnel.
Why do Scotch Plains-Fanwood Public Schools need more space?
Why do Scotch Plains-Fanwood Public Schools need more space?
The student population has been on the rise across our eight school buildings, making it increasingly difficult for the schools to operate effectively. The main factors contributing to that growth are new young families moving into Scotch Plains and Fanwood, the birthrate, and new housing developments. This is because our town is highly desirable – with a key reason being the quality of our public schools.
Space in the district is already at a premium. At the middle schools, temporary trailers were installed to provide eight additional classrooms and have already outlived their expected lifespan. Three out of the five elementary schools lack dedicated music rooms, only one elementary school has a dedicated Spanish room, and lunch periods are staggered over multiple hours in one cafeteria. As we strive to provide the same services and programming across all the elementary schools, an inequity has also arisen in which Evergreen has more space than the other buildings and School One has class sizes that are over the recommended amount in certain grade levels. Crowded schools will affect how SPF children learn.
To ease this issue in the short term, the district’s administrative offices at Evergreen were relocated to rented space off-site; the offices were converted into eight additional educational spaces for Evergreen at the start of the 2024-25 school year. Administrators were also moved from SPFHS to the rented space at 313 South Avenue to create additional space in the high school.
Another short-term solution is the bond proposal before voters on January 28, 2025. Voter approval would allow the district to move pre-kindergarten students into one building, freeing up nine classrooms in the elementary schools. The district’s administrative offices could also be moved to the third floor of La Grande, saving money for the district by no longer having to pay for rented space.
With La Grande secured as a community asset, the district could consider in the future whether to keep it as an Early Learning Center if enrollment is steady or expand it into a full elementary school if enrollment rises as projected.
How would La Grande ease space issues in the elementary schools?
How would La Grande ease space issues in the elementary schools?
If the referendum passes, La Grande would be used for pre-kindergarten students on the first two floors of the building; the district would consider moving its Central Offices from temporary rented space to the third floor of La Grande.
This plan would free up nine classrooms across four of the five elementary schools. By moving pre-kindergarten into one building, the elementary schools would have nine open classrooms to use for art, music, and Spanish classes or special services like OT/PT and ESL. This would ease the space crunch in the short-term and help maintain class sizes.
McGinn is SPF’s only elementary school that doesn't currently have pre-kindergarten. By shifting some special education services from McGinn to other elementary schools, we could provide one extra classroom in McGinn to also ease space constraints.
Please visit the "Ballot Explained" page for a breakdown of how each school plans to use the additional space.
Will SPF students remain in their schools? Is redistricting still happening?
Will SPF students remain in their schools? Is redistricting still happening?
The outcome of the September referendum ruled out the option of an expansion at the La Grande site for a pre-K-grade five elementary school for the time being. This scaled-back proposal up for vote in January would provide short-term relief for our elementary schools and allow most students to remain in their current schools for the foreseeable future.
POLLS OPEN 2 – 8 P.M.
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