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Why is Holyoke Public Schools rezoning its elementary and middle schools?
Rezoning Perspectives:
HPS Superintendent Anthony Soto
Holyoke Mayor and School Committee Chair Joshua Garcia
The 2023-24 school year marks Holyoke’s return to separate elementary, middle, and high schools. This decision was made after years of gathering stakeholder feedback, innovating with different programs and models, and analyzing data. The recent rezoning work allows HPS to:
Design schools tailored to elementary or middle school grades;
Staff each grade with a complete team of teachers who collaborate together;
Ensure program continuity for specialized special education programs and from elementary through middle school;
Expand learning opportunities, including offering engaging enrichment opportunities for students and growing the dual language program; and
Dedicate more resources to instruction, not operations.
When former Superintendent Dr. Zrike came to Holyoke in 2015, many parents and staff asked him to change back to elementary and middle schools. In 2016, HPS leaders helped study the issue and gather feedback from the community. Families in the community felt their children deserved more. Families wanted their 12-year-old children to have more learning opportunities and more independence at school. Families wanted their 5-year-old children to have appropriate learning spaces for art and music and to be assigned to schools designed for their age. After a lot of input and presentations, HPS decided to gradually move to separate elementary and middle schools.
Around the same time, HPS was seeking approval to build two new middle schools. So, rather than change everything at once, HPS made incremental changes each year to move towards this model. E.N. White and Morgan were changed to elementary schools in 2019, when the district opened two new middle school buildings: STEM co-located at Holyoke High Dean Campus and Veritas Prep, co-located with Peck. Kelly and later Donahue started a slow transition to become elementary schools by removing one middle school grade per year. Meanwhile, the Metcalf dual language program continued to grow, so more grades were added there. At one point, HPS had 9 different grade configurations across 11 schools! During the 2021-2022 school year, HPS had schools that served grades PreK-3, PreK-4, PreK-5, grades 4-8, grades 5-8, grades 6-8, PreK-7, PreK-8 and PreK-5 plus 8. This was confusing to students, staff, and families. HPS needed to organize our schools in a more systematic way that supports student learning, educator development and effective student-family-school partnerships.
In 2021, a middle grades collaborative study team also met to develop a clear vision for middle education; consider academic, SEL, operational, and equity implications; and emerge with a recommendation of middle grades school configuration (grades 5-8 or grades 6-8). The team conducted significant analysis and research, and their recommendations were shared publicly in fall 2021 at many public meetings.
In December 2021, HPS leadership sought support from the School Committee to move towards separate elementary and middle schools by fall 2023 with middle schools serving grades 6-8. The School Committee unanimously agreed, and HPS began an extensive engagement process to move towards six PreK-5 elementary schools and three middle schools for grades 6-8. Ultimately, HPS will have two middle schools after a new building is constructed and opened in late 2025. Elementary schools will serve between 300-450 students each, while the middle schools will serve 500-550 students each once the new middle school is built.
Towards the end of the 2021-22 school year, HPS launched a six-month rezoning planning process. From spring to fall 2022, more than 1,250 people participated in 46 public and internal meetings; 710 people responded across three surveys; and countless stakeholders attended 60+ school and community events. HPS is particularly thankful for the Rezoning Task Force, composed of community members, family members, and school and district staff. Task force members studied the issues over time and made recommendations. HPS is also proud that staff meetings were held at every elementary, middle, and K-8 school because we knew that rezoning would greatly impact their professional lives and we wanted to honor their voices.
From December 2022 to August 2023, HPS engaged in the critical work of implementation, which included assigning students, reassigning staff, introducing families to their new school communities, and moving thousands of boxes.
In 2022, the Rezoning Task Force and Rezoning Working Group helped develop guidelines for how decisions about rezoning would be made, with input from other stakeholders gathered during public meetings and from a survey open to all community members.
The Rezoning Guidelines include:
Most Important
Design schools that put student needs first and prioritizes money spent on instruction
Ensure equitable access to special programs
Very Important
Balance student demographics across schools (In discussions, this seemed especially important for middle school)
Ensure program continuity from elementary to middle school
Ensure efficient use of space and stable enrollment
Important
Ensure safe walking routes
Have neighborhood schools (Access to the school seemed especially important in subsequent conversations for elementary)
Minimize the impact of families
Minimize transportation costs
To read more about the elements included in each guideline, please see these slides.
Letter from Superintendent Soto sharing Rezoning Decisions (Dec. 2, 2022)
Zone Map and Student Attendance sheet (Dec. 2, 2022)
The exact boundary lines and zone maps (Dec. 2, 2022)
Student Reassignment Process (See prior bullet point.)
Zone Appeal process and timing (Released Dec. 2, 2022; updated Feb. 13, 2023)
Upgrades to Sullivan Middle and Metcalf Middle (Dec. 2, 2022)
PreK and Special Education Program Locations (November 10, 2022)
Elementary and Middle Schools Decisions with Principals Announced (October 28, 2022)
Reassignment Process for Impacted Staff <Accessible by Staff Only> (October 28, 2022)
Rezoning presentation to School Committee (November 21, 2022)
Slide-deck presentation from the November 21 School Committee Meeting
Video recording of the School Committee presentation in English or in Spanish beginning at the 31:30 minute mark.
Rezoning Perspective: HPS Superintendent Anthony Soto (January 2023)
Rezoning Perspective: Holyoke Mayor and School Committee Chair Joshua Garcia (January 2023)
Why is Holyoke Public Schools rezoning its elementary and middle schools? (May 2022)
Middle grade collaborative study team recommendations (fall 2021)
We especially want to express appreciation for the people who have been heavily involved in the process, including:
The Rezoning Working Group (primarily school, district and city leaders);
The Rezoning Task Force (families, community members, and staff);
The Cabinet team;
Stefany Garcia, Jasarah Burgos, and the entire FACE team;
The Middle Grades collaboration study team members who made recommendations on the middle school model;
The School Committee;
The Middle School Building Committee;
The HPS Communications team;
Our outreach consultants (Nayroby Rosa, Jose Bou, Kathy Anderson, Cynthia Espinosa); and
Our technical consultants from AppGeo (Priya Sankalia, Ashley Tardif, Russell Cohen, Kate Hickey).
We also thank everyone who has completed surveys and participated in a variety of community events and discussions to learn more.