This Wednesday's City Council meeting will include a discussion of school regionalization and my proposal that we postpone the ballot vote. I put forward this proposal because I recognize the potential benefits of regionalization with combined school facilities, but that is not what has been offered so far. The consultants have not addressed the impact of separate facilities, and there is no proposed plan to expand educational offerings when students are split between buildings across two communities. Additionally, the presentations and report from the consultant have all been focused on comparing the proposed Middletown-Newport district to districts with combined school facilities; the assessment does not consider the cost of maintaining a district with an oversized facilities footprint. There are significant blind spots in the analysis up to this point.
I chose to submit a resolution to delay the ballot vote rather than cancel it entirely because I believe that Middletown and Newport could work together to make a truly regionalized district a reality. Right now, we are rushing toward a future that would keep us locked into a model with separate schools in Middletown and Newport for decades to come. We are focused on meeting the reimbursement deadline, but in doing so, we will be building the wrong buildings. There will still be added reimbursement available if we wait and work together on a path forward that involves merging our facilities. Newport would need to take an active role in the Middletown School Building Committee's plans so they could be shaped for a unified future. If we do this, regionalization could be a success. Let's take the time now to work together and focus on how to build the right buildings for our educational and financial future. I believe our communities and students will be better off for it.
More community meetings to discuss regionalization are scheduled for tomorrow, August 22, 3:30-5:30 pm and 6:00-8:00 pm at the Knights of Columbus in Middletown. A zoom session is scheduled for Tuesday, August 23 at 6:00 pm. It is vital to continue to make your voice heard at these community meetings and during Wednesday's City Council meeting.