Westfield School Committee member Cindy Sullivan. (WNG file photo)
WESTFIELD – Two School Committee meetings will be held on Monday, April 23 at the South Middle School auditorium on 30 West Silver Street.
The Educational Planning and Technology sub-committee will begin at 6 p.m. The meeting will open with public participation, and then proceed to the sole item on the agenda, options and procedures for naming the Grades 5-6 school and the Grades 7-8 school.
Cindy Sullivan, School Committee vice-chair and chair of the sub-committee, said the purpose of the meeting will be to discuss the naming of the schools, based on their configuration. “We will go over our policy regarding naming schools and discuss what thoughts people have. I would like the name to be one that is not confusing to residents. As always, we encourage people to attend the meeting and offer their opinions,” Sullivan said.
Ronald R. Rix, CFO, Westfield Public Schools
Ronald R. Rix, Chief Financial Officer for the Westfield Public Schools said the policy prohibits naming schools after people. He said the only exception in the district is the Abner Gibbs School, which predated the policy. Abner Gibbs served as principal of the Westfield Academy, later known as the Westfield High School from 1867 until his death in 1883. Abner Gibbs Elementary School was named in his honor when it opened in 1914.
The School Committee meeting and a public hearing on the proposed FY19-FY20 school budget will follow the sub-committee meeting in the auditorium, beginning at 7 p.m. with public participation.
Rix said the budget will reflect the redistricting, and the closing of one school. He said the district is still working out some of the questions, such as how many teachers will be needed at each school.
“Other than the two high schools, every school is affected by the redistricting,” Rix said.
After the budget is presented to the School Committee on Monday, it will be referred to the Finance sub-committee meeting scheduled for April 30 at City Hall, when committee members will go through the budget line by line. The School Committee will then vote to approve a budget and send it to the Mayor, who will in turn send it to the City Council.
Rix said according to state regulations, both the Mayor and the City Council can only make cuts to the budget, and they cannot tell the School Department where to cut. He also said he would be working on the presentation right up until the start of the meeting on Monday.
