For Athens County preschool students, teachers and parents, less will soon be worth more — at least according to plans recently set in motion by the Athens City School District.
More than a month after announcing that Chauncey Elementary will close this fall, Superintendent Carl Martin said the district’s four preschool programs will be consolidated into the soon-to-be vacant Chauncey building.
Central administration and preschool teachers made the decision to consolidate the district’s preschool programs — currently at Chauncey, Morrison-Gordon, The Plains and West elementary schools — late last week, Martin said.
“It creates a little more space for the four preschool programs that are currently in place,” he added. “The teachers thought that it was a good idea because they will be able to collaborate with each other, share materials, have more space and create a better environment for the students.”
Though Martin said he doesn’t foresee large financial savings from consolidating the schools, it would be a good opportunity to keep the Chauncey building occupied.
“The elementary school was closed to save money due to low enrollment, but the building is still a good asset and I want to keep it active,” he said.
Classrooms where the preschoolers were taught would be left vacant unless the principal of the school decides to put the rooms to use, Martin said.
The Plains Elementary, which is slated to take 143 students from Chauncey, will have one such vacant room, Principal Heather Skinner said.
“The room will be used as a classroom regardless if a new teacher were to come,” Skinner said. “With the amount of students coming (to The Plains Elementary) from the Chauncey area, there’s a possibility of adding some new teachers, but that’s up to the district.”
While Skinner is hoping to make more space for new students, West Elementary Principal Joan Linscott said she’s hoping to make room for current students.
West Elementary has to use a module, which is a building separate from the main elementary building, to house about 13 special-education students because there’s not enough room in the school’s main building, Linscott said.
“Those students have a variety of issues,” she said. “There’s a lot of travel time and wasted instructional time involved in moving them back and forth between the module and the main building.”
Though most preschoolers in the district will be attending school in a new area, Martin said he doesn’t anticipate much backlash from the public.
“The transportation will be a little bit different, but we should be able to have better transportation because everything will be located in one space,” he said. “I don’t see a lot of downsides to this.”
Chauncey Elementary Principal Peggy Williams and Morrison-Gordon Principal Penny McDowell could not be reached for comment by press time.
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