School board declares 'emergency' in Morrisville

From buckslocalnews.com

School board declares 'emergency' in Morrisville
By Petra Chesner Schlatter; Staff Editor Posted on Wed, Jan 7, 2009

MORRISVILLE -- In an 8-0 vote, the Morrisville School Board passed a resolution Jan. 5 declaring an emergency and authorizing certain purchases in the wake of the Dec. 13 furnace explosion at M.R. Reiter Elementary School.

Those purchases are contingent on whether or not the insurance company will pay for eight modulars.

A special hearing is scheduled for Jan. 29 about the possible closure of M.R. Reiter forever. The board majority, led by President Bill Hellman, is in favor of closing the school, despite opposition from parents. M.R. Reiter has been closed since the blast.

Paul DeAngelo, the school district's new business manager, told a full house at the special meeting that a report was scheduled to be released at press time about the composition of the soot, which was caused by the explosion.

After the meeting, DeAngelo said the report would tell whether carcinogens were found in the soot. He confirmed that asbestos was confined to the chimney of the furnace.

DeAngelo gave a detailed presentation about how much it would cost to lease eight modulars, which would be installed at Grandview Elementary School.

The board approved the leasing of eight modular classrooms with restrooms from Mobilease Modular Space, Inc. of Thoro-fare, N.J. The total cost over two years would be $433,472 plus the cost for delivery costs to dismantle and return the modulars.

The cost would be $5,760 per month for 24 months plus $6,400 delivery, $98,932 for set-up and $189,900 for utilities.

With the vote approving the modulars, the configuration of which grades will go where will change. Some parents attending the special meeting were concerned that fifth-graders would attend classes at the Morrisville Middle/Senior High School.

Dr. Elizabeth Yonson, superintendent, assured the audience that if M.R. Reiter were to be closed, fifth graders would be segregated from the sixth-graders at the middle/senior high school. But she stressed that a configuration plan is not yet in place because the school board would have to approve one.

Yonson also noted that the Pre-Kindergarten classes, which have been held at the YMCA, could go to the middle/high school. She said this is done in other school districts and that high school students often work with that population.

First-and second-grades would attend class in the modulars. Kindergarten classes would be held in Grandview Elementary. Third-and fourth-grades would remain at the main building at Grandview.

Yonson described the modulars as "very nice" and "great." She noted there would be bathrooms in the classrooms and covered walkways for children. The modulars would be air-conditioned. She said without air conditioning, summer was "unbearable on the second floor of M.R. Reiter."

"There will be new carpeting," Yonson said. "They look absolutely brand new. When you walk in, you would not know you were in a modular."

One parent was concerned about the noise that would be created when the modulars were installed. Yonson said there would be less noise than in the older modulars now at M.R. Reiter.

"We need to do something immediately so our children and teachers have a quality education," Yonson said.

Opening the public comment section was former School Board Member Johanny Manning, who had advocated building the controversial $30-million consolidated school complex. That plan called for housing all grades in one facility.

Manning served on the school board before the new majority took control of the school board after the November 2007 elections. The new majority was part of a slate to stop plans for the school complex. The new board stopped the school from being built.

Saying the current problems with M.R. Reiter were inevitable, Manning asserted that the problem would have occurred regardless of whom was serving on the school board.

"I have to say, 'We told you so,'" Manning said. "We knew that the furnaces were long past their expectancy. I don't want to hear it's a total surprise. It's been happening for years. I say, shame on you!"

Manning said the school year has "truly been interrupted."

She criticized the school board for "spending a half-million dollars not knowing what we will do in a month. If the building is not reopened, how do we change the configuration?"

Yonson said insurance would pay for the modulars, it is not coming from district funds.

Jon Perry, a Morrisville Borough resident, told the audience to continue attending school board meetings. "You really have to keep your eye on this board," he said. Perry added that people should "try to get [board members] to do the right thing."

Perry said the current board majority "forges ahead" with "inadequate information."

School Board Member Bill Farrell said, "I come here month in and month out. It's a circus. Forget what's happened in the past." He said M.R. Reiter was a "time bomb."

One resident said that "all three schools are time bombs."

One idea that was raised was using Manor Elementary School to ease crowding at Grandview because of M.R. Reiter students being placed at Grandview.

However, Mike Fitzpatrick, board solicitor, said the district and the Head Start program have a lease/purchase agreement for 20 years. He said using Manor, which is owned by the school district, would probably not be an option.

Parents asked when teachers would be able to get the rest of their teaching materials. One parent alleged that the teachers were just "babysitting" the children. But, Yonson and Laurie Ruffing, acting elementary principal, said that was not true. Teachers were able to go into M.R. Reiter after the blast to get some of what they needed.

The teachers, Ruffing said, will get additional materials before the clean-up effort at M.R. Reiter is complete.

During the meeting, other parents expressed their concerns about the morning drop-off and afternoon pick-up of students. They said that more crossing guards are needed at the high school for the students' safety.