News

Survey: 93% of New Canaan Public Schools Parents Will Have Their Kids Start Academic Year with In-Person Learning  

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Some 93% of New Canaan Public Schools parents are choosing to have their kids start the academic year with in-person learning, as permitted, as opposed to going fully remote, district officials said this week. Reporting on the results of a survey focused on an academic year that will open amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Bryan Luizzi said Monday night that the parents of about 400 students still had not completed their survey, which was scheduled to close 2 p.m. Tuesday. “What we have to do is assume anyone who does not respond is in remote learning,” Luizzi said during a special meeting of the Board of Education, held via videoconference. 

The 2020-21 school year will open next Monday under a phased plan that Luizzi outlined at a Board of Ed meeting earlier this month (a continuously updated operations guide can be found here). It calls for students in grades one through 12 to be divided into one of two cohorts that will attend school in-person roughly half the week to start the school year (kindergartners will be divided into morning and afternoon sessions). Should health data and state guidance allow it, then starting Sept.

News

Board of Ed Debates Adoption of Proposed Goals on ‘Equity, Diversity and Inclusion’

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The New Canaan Board of Education last week debated whether to adopt formal goals for the upcoming school year designed to address issues of race through staff training, changes to curriculum and parent education, among other areas. 

Draft goals discussed at the Board’s July 13 meeting (they can be found here, under Goal 4-2, and embedded below as a PDF) include creation of what would be the districts’ first “statement on equity, diversity and inclusion,” as well as an update on Social Studies curriculum and identification of “additional opportunities in other content areas to increase content on diversity and inclusion K-12.”

Some Board members voiced support for adopting the goals, while others said they were concerned about introducing the changes during an academic year that likely will include some form of distance learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic that strains the “bandwidth” of educators and where spending on schools is tight. Sheri West said she strongly supported the new goals and that it’s “crucial that at this moment in history, that we as a Board, as educational leaders in our district that we communicate the importance of these values and really truly that they are at the cornerstone of what we do—our values and our belief system and our actions.”

“I especially like the addition of the professional development and of the parent education,” West said during the 3.5-hour meeting, held via videoconference. “One thing I would like added is I believe in order for us to execute on these goals, we are going to need budget dollars to bring in an expert consultant. I don’t think this is work that we can do alone. I think many districts have already or are hiring DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] leaders for their districts.

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School District Sees Rise in Enrollment for Second Straight Year

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With another increase expected this year, enrollment in New Canaan Public Schools is bucking recent projections that it would flatten, officials said Monday. The district now has 4,194 students enrolled for the upcoming academic year—28 more than last year and 29 more than projected, according to NCPS Director of Human Resources Darlene Pianka. (The figures do not include preschools.)

During an enrollment update to the Board of Education on Monday night, Pianka said New Canaan’s elementary schools now have 1,491 students enrolled—14 more than at the end of June—and that the district will add a kindergarten section at East School and fourth-grade section at South School to maintain acceptable class-size levels. Responding to Board member Dionna Carlson’s observation that recent projections showing a flattening in enrollment are not bearing out, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Bryan Luizzi said, “It’s not bearing out and it’s not bearing out in the region.”

“We are hearing from the towns around us that where it was bearing out, they are seeing a turnaround,” he said during the meeting, held via videoconference. “We are a little concerned about a labor shortage, so we are aggressively going into the market to shore up those long-term subs that are certified positions.

Board of Education

Superintendent: 4th-Quarter Grading Will Depend on Duration of School Closure, State Guidance

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New Canaan Public Schools’ decision on how to grade students during the fourth quarter of the academic year will depend on how long schools are closed, officials said last week. Until the district knows what that duration will be, “it’s very difficult to make a final decision around what the grading structure should be,” Superintendent of Schools Dr. Bryan Luizzi told members of the Board of Education. 

“I do believe that the guidance from the [Connecticut State Department of Education] commissioner will be relatively strong, because I think that districts are struggling with this question,” Luizzi said during the Board of Ed’s April 6 meeting, held via videoconference. 

“As far as what the Board of Education’s role will be in making that decision and as far as what the district team’s role will be in making that decision, I think we need to wait to see what comes out from the commissioner’s office and from the governor in this regard.”

New Canaan schools have been closed since March 12. Students here have been participating in the district’s continually refined e-learning or “remote learning” program, and school will reopen no sooner than April 20, Luizzi has said. Gov. Ned Lamont said Thursday that he intends to sign an order keeping all Connecticut schools closed through at least May 20. The district has already been forced to cancel the popular Senior Internship Program scheduled for this spring, and state officials said they intend to meet next week to discuss the spring varsity sports season.

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After One-Time Suspension, Board of Ed To Reinstate Public Comments Monday

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After suspending the practice for one meeting, members of the Board of Education said last week that they’re hoping to find a secure way for the public to offer comment before the elected body during remote meetings in the future. Receiving people’s emails isn’t an adequate substitute for the live public comment period that’s part of regular meeting agendas, according to Board member Dionna Carlson. 

“I wouldn’t want to see this going to the emails that just come to the Board, because that’s not public,” Carlson said during the Board’s March 30 meeting, held via videoconference. 

“There is a lot going on right now and I do think we need to find a way for the public to be able to address us through the digital platform,” Carlson said. She added, “I think it is is important for us to see and hear the public and for the remainder of the public to see what is being addressed to the Board. So I would not want to see this go to emails and things like that. We just need to figure out how to work with [New Canaan Public Schools Technology Services] to keep these random things off the Zoom platform or go to a different platform that is more secure.”

She referred to inappropriate material that appeared during recent public meetings held by other municipal bodies in New Canaan on Zoom videoconferencing software—a practice known as “Zoom-bombing.”

Board member Bob Naughton suggested the district look into webinar platforms that require advance registration. 

Board Vice Chair Brendan Hayes said it was a good idea to “pre-clear those who are going to speak.”

“It is a bit difficult, I think, but my guess is we are not going to have a huge number of people during this period of time,” he said.