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Community News SAVE OUR SCHOOL!
Dear Families,
An article ran in today's issue (Feb 3rd) of The Aegis that likely spilled
more than one cup of morning coffee in our community. It described the
different options available to the Harford County Public School system to
address overcrowding at some schools and under-enrollment at others, like our
beloved Norrisville Elementary School. NES has 171 students but a capacity of
252, so it is projected at operating at only 62 percent.
Joseph Licata, Chief of Administration for the school system, is quoted
extensively throughout the article and explains that the state requires school
systems to look at situations where enrollment at a school drops below 65
percent, and that one option to correct this imbalance is to transfer the
students "elsewhere", and close the underutilized school.
Close Norrisville?!?!
A timely coincidence finds Mr. Licata previously scheduled to attend our
upcoming CAC meeting on February 9th at 6:00 pm.
It is a perfect opportunity to illustrate what number-crunching cannot capture
- that albeit underutilized, NES still serves as a hub to a vibrant,
committed, multi-generational community determined to maintain a rural quality
of life, and devoted to raising their families accordingly. NES also rounds
out the County Library and Recreation Center in our community complex.
Can you imagine what our area would be like with our school empty and
closed? Please let that chilling thought motivate you to clear your schedules
and join NES Administration, PTA, and existing and former parents and families
as we sit down and discuss alternatives to doomsday with Mr. Licata. It
really does matter - remember the recent library closure scare? When we all
came forward and spoke our piece, the closure moved elsewhere!
As for alternatives, perhaps in the audience there will be former parents
who remember that an earlier district boundary was Troyer Road - if redrawn to
re-establish it as the boundary, conceivably a sufficient number of students
could be reassigned from Jarrettsville Elementary to Norrisville, and
enrollment would swell enough to pass muster. Something to ponder.
In the event that you cannot join us, please consider sending your comments in an email to Joseph.Licata@HCPS.org.
Hope to see you all soon! Julie Marindin, NES PTA President
PTA Sponsored Reflections Program NES School Winners (and submitted for judging at County level) for Reflections 2009 --- "Beauty is ..."
School winner for Primary Literature: (Grades K through 2)
1) Anna Boegner “A Brother Helping a Brother”
School winners for Intermediate Literature:
1) Autumn Hodiste “The Sea” 2) Hannah Blosser “A Beautifully Crafted Friendship” 3) Audrey Dick “What Beauty Is” 4) Hannah Blosser “My View of Friendship”
School winners for Intermediate Film Production:
1) Hannah Blosser “The Beauty That I Know” 2) Hunter Kurgan “Change of Season”
School winners for Primary Visual Arts:
1) Riley Gilmore “Beauty is the Night Moon” 2) Mark Boegner “Sadako and the Paper Cranes” 3) Anna Boegner “Snowfall on a Spring Day” 4) Nicholas Pappas “Beauty is Under the Sea”
School Winners for Intermediate Visual Arts:
1) Aerionna Long “The Beauty of Friends” 2) Hannah Blosser “Beauty is Life” 3) William Pappas “So Many Sunflowers” 4) Lila Murray “Beauty is My Family”
School Winners for Primary Photography:
1) Sierra Warfield “Harvest Time” 2) Anna Boegner “A Walk on the Beach” 3) Henry Prosser “Beauty is COWS” 4) Charlotte McElwain “Beauty is Being Unique”
School Winners for Intermediate Photography:
1) Bethany Birchfield “The Young and the Elderly” 2) Andrew Preston “The Beauty of Summer” 3) William Pappas “Double Rainbow” 4) Eliza Rommelman “Recycle Puppy”
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