Reprieve for Bridgehampton High
A petition vote that would have sent ninth grade packing is blocked
 Kate Maier |
(5/1/2008) Bridgehampton will have its high school — at least for the next two academic years — following a school board decision on Monday against a revised petition that called for phasing out the school by sending ninth-grade students in 2009-10 to other districts. The proposal, submitted by Joseph Berhalter, a board member, will therefore not be on the ballot when the district votes on its annual budget May 20 .
Mr. Berhalter had submitted the petition a second time on April 21, in response to the board’s request for more information on the financial implications of closing the high school. The revised petition estimated that it would cost $660,000 to send ninth-grade students to East Hampton, Sag Harbor, and Southampton schools in the first year. It included state-calculated tuition figures for the three neighboring districts, and estimates on the cost of transportation.
James Walker, the board president, said the board could not call for a vote because there were “enough discrepancies in his math. In our opinion, it’s not complete enough.” He said that the board would not approve a vote with only financial projections for the first academic year. He said that the figures did not cover special education tuition or busing for extracurricular activities.
The board countered Mr. Berhalter’s proposal by having Kathryn DeGroot, a parent, former financial analyst, and member of the school’s audit committee, make an extensive presentation on the possible savings of closing the high school. Mr. Berhalter was visiting relatives in Europe and did not attend the meeting.
Using a series of PowerPoint graphs, Ms. DeGroot went over enrollment and performance as well as the financial implications of having Bridgehampton merge with another district. She indicated that the savings would be minimal and tenuous if the district closed the high school. She also pointed out that there could be an increase in costs for tuition if 10 or more high school students were added to the roster, mentioning two new housing developments in the area.
Because Bridgehampton enjoys one of the lowest tax rates on the East End, merging with one of the three neighboring districts would mean higher taxes. Still, some audience members were skeptical about the level of education the school was able to deliver, and Joseph Conti, a board member who had signed Mr. Berhalter’s petition, argued that “the possibility is that our children are not getting the best opportunity. Everyone on the board is trying to do the best thing for the children, and I think we’re allowed different opinions about how to do that.”
es. Still, some audience members were skeptical about the level of education the school was able to deliver, and Joseph Conti, a board member who had signed Mr. Berhalter’s petition, argued that “the possibility is that our children are not getting the best opportunity. Everyone on the board is trying to do the best thing for the children, and I think we’re allowed different opinions about how to do that.”
Lori Gordon, a parent who does not send her children to the Bridgehampton School, questioned its ability to meet educational goals. She noted that one of Ms. DeGroot’s graphs indicated some students had struggled in some areas in the 2006-7 school year, particularly in one math class.
“Personally, as a mother, I’m more concerned with academics, and the academic quality,” she said. “From an outsider’s perspective, I don’t think the quality is up to snuff.”
Others in the audience refuted that claim, including several parents whose children were in the class. Nicki Hembi, a Parent Teacher Organization member who is making a bid for the school board, said her daughter had initially failed the Regents math exam, but is now on the honor roll. Her family had moved back to the district after spending three years in Florida where, Mrs. Hembi said, she had fallen behind.
Many parents and educators at the meeting argued that because the number of students per class was typically under 10, it was inappropriate to generalize about the quality of education based on such test scores. One student who performs poorly can skew the results, they said. The school’s math teacher also noted that all of the students in the class in question had passed the Regents the second time around.
Many parents, including Ms. DeGroot, said the school and the present board had gotten an unjustly bad rap. “I do believe that a lot of people’s opinions of the Bridgehampton School are based on very, very old data,” she said.
In recent years, the school has initiated a number of academic programs, including one supported by a grant called Reading First. It was reported that test scores in the lower grades have gone up as a result. The district is also sharing more activities with other districts than previously and beginning cooperative initiatives with colleges.
“There’s a tremendous amount of work going on here,” said Dianne Youngblood, the district superintendent. The school has started “collaborative relationships with Stony Brook University, and we’re in the process of researching a grant that would allow sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students to have a science internship in 2009,” she said.
Although small class sizes are usually considered a plus in public schools, some who attended the meeting expressed worry that students do not have the social interactions they need to thrive in high school. Parents refuted that claim.
“When they’re here, they’re in a wonderful, learning-focused environment with very individualized attention,” said Ms. DeGroot. Because of relationships with other schools, “There’s very small class sizes for education, but you have a much wider group to socialize in.”