Because, as Hartford Schools Superintendent Torres-Rodriguez explained it during a budget presentation to the city council in April, Hartford women are just not having enough babies, many Hartford school buildings are operating at less than 50% of capacity.  Torres-Rodriguez told the council that 18 schools have less than 350 students, and 7 “neighborhood” schools have less than 300 students.  Low enrollment has resulted in Torres-Rodriguez hinting at closing and consolidating many schools in Hartford.

Earlier this month, without naming names, the superintended said in a CTMirror story that 9 Hartford schools are being considered for closure.  “Right sizing,” as the superintendent refers to closing or consolidating schools, allows the district to close the disparities in offerings and opportunities between individual schools, while also saving money.  While reportedly looking at closing 10 schools in 2018, the superintendent stated, “"Fewer schools will mean fewer dollars spent on maintaining buildings and more dollars spent on learning. Closing under-capacity schools will allow for reinvestment in our remaining schools to make them better." 

Although the superintendent’s presentation to the city and her statements in the CTMirror story did not name names, did not specifically mention a school that will be involved in closing or consolidation conversations, during a May 9th NRZ meeting she did state that Burr Middle School in the Southend is one school that meets the profile of an underutilized building.  Burr has 307 students at last count (Edsight.gov), and over the last three years has underperformed the district in all state measures of academic achievement.  However, while the district spends $22,167 overall per pupil, the cost per pupil at Burr Middle is $27,155.

So, while it may seem common sensical that schools like Burr ought to be looked at for change, the last time this superintendent initiated school change in Hartford, things did not turn out so well.  The superintendent sought change at another Southend school in 2018, the Batchelder school.  While not closing the building down, she scattered most of the neighborhood kids to other schools in Hartford and turned Batchelder into a magnet school for suburban students.  Since that change, Batchelder has had a lower building utilization rate than before the change and academically there has been only narrow improvement.

While change is obviously necessary, so too is it obvious that the one implementing change at HPS is not making the right decisions.  Torres-Rodriguez has a greater ear for what paid consultants say than for what communities and educators say.  Torres-Rodriguez has a greater concern for the aesthetics and rhetoric of the short game than she does for the greater good of the long game.

Prior to being named permanent superintendent at HPS in 2017, Torres-Rodriguez stated that she understood what Hartford students need to be successful.  Since that time, the failure to turn the district around has been blamed on the “challenges” of a district with a student demographics profile such as HPS has, which is the same demographic profile it had in 2017.  The COVID pandemic has been blamed despite the $155 million in federal aid that Torres-Rodriguez received in order not to blame the COVID pandemic.  And now the focus of blame has moved to underutilized Hartford schools.

Which schools will be closed?  Which schools will be consolidated?  Fortunately, these decisions will most likely be influenced by the state’s recently announced decision to become the overseer of HPS finances for Torres-Rodriguez and her hired consultants.