Gifted merger not to blame for changes

Changes are coming for students in Challenger K-8 and those in the gifted program who will be merging with the school.

Some parents and other community members are concerned the merger will result in more overcrowding, decreased enrollment and shrinking extracurricular activities, while administrators say most changes would be due to class size restrictions.

Andrew Caamano, a magnet school committee board member, said he received complaints this week from parents claiming that moving the gifted program from Explorer K-8 to Challenger will have adverse effects.

Although most of the concerns were unfounded, Caamano said some were not, such as elimination of electives and fewer sixth-grade applications being accepted.

"But from what I can tell, these aren't from the merger," Caamano said. "From the responses I got from the superintendent and the principal (Sue Stoops), these are from the class size amendment."

In an e-mail response to a list of concerns, Stoops said she doesn't believe that possible changes will force the school to deviate from plans to accommodate gifted program students.

She said her biggest concern was the possible loss of electives and added that school board members have requested a list of those that might be cut.

"I would really hate to have this happen," Stoops said. "This cut in electives, though, is more a function of the class size reduction mandates and the resulting staffing plan than it is the gifted students coming here."

She added that until definite numbers are submitted, she couldn't be certain what changes might be in store for the school.

According to an e-mail from concerned parents, they worried that the extra students from the gifted program would make the school overcrowded, that there will be too much of an increase in students taking electives and that taking in gifted students would eliminate those seeking acceptance into the school through portfolio and lottery.

Stoops responded those scenarios aren't expected to occur - that overcrowding isn't expected, every middle school student will have the same chance of getting a preferred elective and that there would be students who would still enroll through portfolio and lottery.

"We do know it will mean some changes for Challenger, but I really do not anticipate that the quality of our school or instruction will change," Stoops said. "The biggest issue is that we will not be able to take in the usual number of sixth-graders next year."

Meanwhile, Caamano said he believes everyone will likely have to wait to see what is recommended to meet class size changes while school board and magnet school committee members also continue to work out magnet school procedures.

"A big question is still whether they're going to eliminate some of the extra science classes out of the curriculum," Caamano said. "But we'll have to see what the board does in reevaluating what resources we have to help deal with overcrowding."