Monroe: Board of ed looking for insight on schools' overcrowding
Susan Loyer
Courier News and Home News Tribune
MONROE - Residents have the rest of the month to tell the board of education how to accommodate the school district's increasing enrollment.
In wake of two failed referendums to approve building projects, the board created a 24-member ad hoc committee, which includes representatives from each stakeholder group, such as administrators, teachers, former students, parents of varied grade levels and schools, planned retirement communities, and the board, Superintendent of Schools Dori L. Alvich said in an email.
Members include "yes" and "no" voters on the past building referendum, Alvich said.
Prospective committee members were asked to submit a letter of interest to Board President Kathy Kolupanowich. Then a committee consisting of board members and administrators selected the ad hoc committee, the superintendent said.
Kolupanowich named former school board member Lou Masters as chairman of the ad hoc committee.
The goal is to provide a recommendation to the board of education on how to house the expected increase in enrollment in the next five to 20 years, Alvich said.
The deadline for community members to submit proposals is July 31. The committee will then review all proposals and make recommendations to the Board of Education, according to the board.
"The middle school has an operational capacity of approximately 1,100 students," the superintendent said. "Enrollment is projected to be over 2,050 in the next four years. Ten temporary instructional trailers are deployed now, but the main problem is the core structures, like the gym and cafeteria, are currently stressed."
The high school also has issues, according to the superintendent.
"The operational capacity of the high school is approximately 1,800, and the enrollment is expected to be 2,800 in the next four years," Alvich said.
Adding to the problems faced by the district is that the amount of state aid has not kept pace with enrollment growth.
Although there has been a 29 percent growth in student population, the state aid per pupil is still less than it was in the 2008-09 school year.
In the 2008-09 school year, Monroe received $864.95 per pupil in state aid and in the 2019-20 school year, Monroe is anticipating receiving $846.41 per pupil in state aid.
The 2019-20 figure represents a nearly 9 percent increase in state aid per student from the 2018-19 school year. The current state aid figure is almost twice what Monroe received in 2015-16.
In 2008-09, there were 5,398 students in the school district compared to an anticipated 6,989 students in the 2019-20 school year.
In an attempt to deal with the overcrowding, a two-question referendum was defeated by voters in March.
READ:Monroe: First female superintendent of schools now leading district
The first question asked voters if they were in favor of building a second middle school on a 35-acre site at Applegarth and Cranbury Station roads. The school would have housed 1,000 students at an estimated $75.7 million to build. The question was defeated by about 995 votes.
READ:Monroe school referendum turned down by voters
The second question asked voters if they were in favor of building an addition to the high school at an estimated cost of $71 million. The proposed addition was contingent on the passage of the middle school question. The second question was defeated by 1,152 votes.
In 2018, a $68.8 million referendum for construction of a new middle school was defeated by 143 votes.
Anyone wishing to make suggestions to the board by July 31 can email proposals to ADHOC@MONROE.K12.NJ.US or by mailing them to Monroe Township BOE, 423 Buckelew Ave. Monroe Township, NJ 08831
Susan Loyer covers Middlesex County for the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey. Contact her at 732-565-7243 or sloyer@gannettnj.com.